POLICE pursued a man across part of a town centre, through a furniture store, and into a river, until he made his escape using a narrow drainpipe.

A dozen police officers, eight firemen and the Durham Fire and Rescue crew's boat patrolled part of the River Skerne, in Darlington, for two hours yesterday afternoon, but the fugitive gave them the slip.

The drama happened just below the East Street bridge where firefighters and police officers waded into the river to look for the man.

The pipe extends into the town centre, although police believe it unlikely that the man could have crawled that far.

No trace of the man, said to be in his 30s, was found, and it is thought he only stayed in the drain for several minutes, before making his escape through dense reeds.

The operation was called off at about 4pm.

Earlier, the man was chased through the nearby MFI store, where witnesses said he jumped between furniture in an attempt to escape.

The chase started after police were alerted at about 1.45pm, when staff at the Tom Raine Court Salvation Army shelter reported seeing three strangers on the premises.

Officers searched the building, and found a man and his girlfriend, who were not residents. While checks were being carried out, the man fled, sparking the pursuit.

Last night, police said the man was not wanted for arrest, and was chased because he was thought to have taken, or to be in possession of, drugs.

Acting Inspector Gavin Musgrave said the man's safety had been the priority.

He said: "The pipe is underneath the bridge in the middle, and we had an officer patrolling to the right, but by the time one ran across to the left, he could have run into reeds at the side.

"We had reports of something disturbing the ducks downstream, and officers who were on the ground said the reeds were like a curtain, so he could have escaped that way.

"There were some marks around the entrance to the pipe, showing that he went in a little way, but probably no more than that.

"Our main concern was that he may have been involved in substance misuse, and his safety was our primary concern."