Police arrest Portland man with rifle near Salem Hospital after foot chase

A man carried a rifle outside the Salem Hospital campus and led officers on a foot chase before surrendering to “less lethal rounds” and a police dog Tuesday night, according to the Salem Police Department.

Luis A. Escobedo Castaneda, 25, of Portland was arrested on accusations of unlawful possession of a firearm, interfering with a police officer and second-degree disorderly conduct.

Officers responded just before 8 p.m. Tuesday to a report of an armed man outside the hospital at the intersection of Southeast Oak and Capitol streets carrying what appeared to be a rifle, Salem police said in a news release.

Police found the man, who they identified as Castaneda, walking near the intersection of Southeast University and Leslie streets.

“Castaneda refused to comply with verbal commands from arriving officers and ran,” according to the police statement.

Police said he led officers on a brief foot chase before reaching a fence. When he faced the officers, part of the rifle was visible in his waistband.

“Castaneda continued refusing officer orders to comply and motioned repeatedly toward his waist. He surrendered only after the deployment of less lethal rounds and a police canine. He was taken into custody without further incident,” police said.

Police deployed the 40mm projectiles using a launcher, according to Salem police spokeswoman Angela Hedrick.

Officers seized a loaded rifle from Castaneda.

He received a medical examination before being lodged at the Marion County Jail, where he was being held as of Wednesday afternoon, the jail’s roster showed. Police said he is scheduled to face the charges on Wednesday at the Marion County Criminal Court Annex.

The hospital went into lockdown at 8:03 p.m. until shortly after the arrest. Salem Health said in a written statement that the suspect was not a patient or employee of Salem Health, and “there was no interference with patient care.”

Court records showed Castaneda was released from jail the three days before the hospital incident.

Marion County prosecutors charged him in July 2024 with interfering with a peace officer. After he failed to appear in court in December, the Keizer Police Department arrested Castaneda on a warrant on Feb. 15.

He was released from jail that same day. His release agreement described him as transient.

This story was updated Wednesday afternoon with additional information from Salem Health and the Salem Police Department.

Contact reporter Ardeshir Tabrizian: [email protected] or 503-929-3053.

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