At about 3:40 p.m., on Oct. 24, 1998, a 30 year old Burlington man, Rogelio Vasquez, attacked Island County Corrections Deputy Frank Gavin outside the Coupeville jail, seized his 9mm semi-automatic Ruger, pistol whipped him and then escaped on foot.

Vasquez had just been transported to the local jail from the Skagit County Corrections facility, where he had been held overnight after a court hearing in that county on an earlier robbery (in their jurisdiction). He was being returned to the Island County facility, where he had been held since Oct. 20 for an earlier arrest by Washington State Patrol for driving while an habitual offender (license suspended). After being assaulted, Deputy Gavin alerted his co-workers to the escape, and he and another jail employee joined efforts to locate the suspect.

Deputy Frank Gavin, the Corrections Deputy that was pistol whipped, had about 15 stitches placedin several areas of his head. He has returned to work since this incident.

Sometime during the assault on Frank, Vasquez attempted to pull the trigger of Frank's service pistol but because of the condition of his hand, unfamiliarity of the pistol or some other unknown reason the pistol did not go off.

Vasquez dislocated his thumb or some other part of his hand to slip out of the handcuff. Sometime during the assault on Frank, Vasquez attempted to pull the trigger of Frank's service pistol but because of the condition of his hand, unfamiliarity of the pistol or some other unknown reason the pistol did not go off. He was held pending multiple felony charges for escape, eluding, robbery, assault and burglary.

This information taken from a press release from the Island County Sheriff's Office, dated October 24, 1998.

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