PORT ANGELES — Police continued to look Thursday for a man wanted on a felony warrant whose sighting prompted a multiagency search Wednesday.
Travis A. Nicolaysen, 26, of Port Angeles escaped officers in two foot chases Wednesday during a manhunt in a residential neighborhood near Olympic Medical Center, with officers tracking him from Caroline Street to the Waterfront Trail.
No one has reported seeing Nicolaysen since then, Port Angeles Detective Sgt. Tyler Peninger said Thursday.
Nicolaysen is wanted by the state Department of Corrections for parole violations, having failed to check in with his parole officer since January.
Police also have probable cause to arrest Nicolaysen for felony assault, said Port Angeles Police Sgt. Barbara McFall, adding that officers believe he seriously injured his girlfriend in an assault March 28.
Nicolaysen stands 5 feet 7 inches tall and weighs about 150 pounds, the state Department of Corrections said.
He has long, wavy brown hair frequently worn in a braid or ponytail and tends to wear a mustache with short, full beard or goatee, police said.
He also has a small teardrop tattoo under the outer corner of his left eye and tattoos on the left side of his neck, both forearms and both calves.
Nicolaysen has been convicted of five felonies, police said.
Those include domestic violence, residential burglary, theft of a firearm and court-order violations.
On Wednesday afternoon, Nicolaysen was spotted near Civic Field and then on First Street.
The first foot chase began at about 2:35 p.m. near the 1200 block of East First Street, but the officer lost sight of Nicolaysen, McFall said.
Later, Nicolaysen popped up again and began to run north in the area of OMC, McFall said.
Officers gave chase on foot before losing sight of him again, she said.
Police dog Jag and his handler, Cpl. Kevin Miller, were called in to assist with the search at about 3:10 p.m., McFall said.
The dog tracked Nicolaysen and located his blue bandanna but did not find Nicolaysen, who also was wearing a brown jacket, blue jeans and sunglasses, and carrying a backpack, she said.
By 4:43 p.m., officers had determined that he had gotten away and stopped the search in the area.
“It is believed he may have been driven away from the area in a vehicle,” McFall said.
The high turnout of law enforcement officers for the search of the neighborhood where Nicolaysen was last seen was partly because of the first foot chase, Peninger said.
“A suspect who runs has demonstrated that he is not going to comply,” he said.
“There is a greater chance of a fight when the officer catches up to him,” he added.
At least three agencies helped the Port Angeles Police Department with the search and containment: Clallam County Sheriff’s Office, State Patrol and U.S. Border Patrol.
The chase began just before a shift change, so more officers were available to help control access to the neighborhood where Nicolaysen was last seen, Peninger said.
The involvement of the Border Patrol is not an indication of Nicolaysen’s citizenship status, he said.
Peninger said Border Patrol officers are part of the regional interagency mutual aid agreement and respond to assist other agencies without regard to the immigration status of the suspect in question.
Anyone with information about Nicolaysen’s whereabouts is asked to phone the Port Angeles Police Department at 360-452-4545.
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Reporter Arwyn Rice can be reached at 360-417-3535 or at arwyn.rice@peninsuladailynews.com.
Managing Editor/News Leah Leach can be reached at 360-417-3531 or leah.leach@peninsuladailynews.com.
