IN- Wanted man slashes throat as police rush in

12-10-2008 Indiana:

A man being sought in connection with a series of recent voyeurism is expected to recover after slashing his throat Tuesday morning as police officers stormed into a hotel room where he was staying.

Michael David Webb, 29, was rushed into surgery at Deaconess Hospital shortly after it happened. Although he suffered a serious injury, Evansville Police Department spokesman Steve Green said Webb likely will be all right.

"It appears that he's going to be OK," Green said, adding Webb will remain under police guard until he is discharged. "As soon as he gets well enough, they're going to take him to jail." Webb also is wanted on a felony warrant out of Pike County for failing to register as a sex offender.

It happened shortly after 10:30 a.m. as police kicked down the door to a room Webb was staying in at the Esquire Inn, 1817 Old Business 41, Green said.

As soon as they walked in, Green said Webb slit his throat with a four-inch blade. Authorities later discovered another self-inflicted injury to Webb's wrist, Green said.

The raid on the hotel room came as authorities investigated several voyeurism cases near Boeke Road and Morgan Avenue this month.

In each case, Green said the person peeked in a window of a residence, said something sexually vulgar to a person inside and fled on foot. There are three reports of such cases, but Green said more are pending.

Authorities believe Webb also is responsible for passing "perverted" notes to gas station attendants in the same area, Green said.

Webb previously was arrested for voyeurism in Evansville in 2004, Green said, although it was unclear Tuesday what the outcome of that case was. According to the online Indiana Offender Database, Webb has previous convictions for sexual misconduct with a minor in Clinton and Dubois counties. He has been convicted of failure to register as a sex offender in Pike and Dubois counties. ..News Source.. by Gavin Lesnick