LEWISTON – Several police agencies are lauding a Sun Journal photographer for tackling a suspect who jumped from a third-floor balcony Wednesday to escape the officers pursuing him.

Photographer Russ Dillingham was credited with helping police capture 35-year-old Norman Thompson of Lewiston as Thompson tried to flee from police and federal agents.

“We never would have caught this guy without Russ,” said Lewiston police Detective Sgt. Adam Higgins. “He was able to take pictures, tackle the guy and then hold him for us.”

For a week, investigators from Lewiston, Auburn and the Maine State Police as well as the Maine Warden Service had been searching for Thompson on charges that he stole several vehicles and led police on chases around the county.

After Higgins spotted Thompson early Wednesday afternoon riding a bicycle on Pine Street, the suspect sought refuge in an apartment building.

“I saw the bicycle lying in a walkway,” Higgins said. “But he was nowhere to be found.”

Several officers showed up at the scene and undercover agents were joining them. Dillingham, who had heard the call for backup on a police scanner, was there as fast as some of the officers.

“Russ was there taking pictures of us as we made entry,” Higgins said.

He also knew just where to be.

“I’ve been doing this a long time,” the 25-year veteran of news photography said. “I kind of figured he’d be where the cops weren’t. I figured I’d be another set of eyes.”

On the third floor, police found a door leading to a storage shed and pushed it open.

“The door was being pushed back at us,” Higgins said. “We knew then that our suspect was in there.”

Police forced their way through the door, which usually ends such chases. But Thompson is a known runner, they said, who will try to escape from officers in any way he can. Wednesday was no exception.

“He took off running. And then, at a full sprint, he went right over the railing like Superman. He was literally like Spider-man,” Higgins said. “This was from the third floor.”

“He just launched himself off that porch,” Dillingham said. “I couldn’t believe he was jumping from that height.

Thompson landed on a garage roof next door.

“He hit hard,” Higgins said. “And then he jumped from that roof to the ground, like a cat.”

Dillingham’s years of experience paid off as he captured dramatic photographs of the suspect in midair between the tenement balcony and the garage where he landed.

But once those photos were taken, Dillingham, 47, found himself with a new role.

“I screamed down, ‘Tackle him, Russ! Tackle him!” Higgins said.

Dillingham heard the officer, loud and clear.

“I always kind of wondered what I’d do in a situation like that,” Dillingham said. “But you don’t even think about it. You just react.”

Police said Thompson was trying to run away. With no officer nearby, they watched from the balcony and hoped that Dillingham would step in. They were not disappointed.

“Russ ran after him, his camera flew to the ground, and he tackled him,” Higgins said. “He got on top of him. Russ is a lot bigger than him and he held him there.

“He squirmed a little,” Dillingham said of Thompson. “But he didn’t put up much of a fight. Later, I was thinking, ‘What if he had a gun or a knife?'”

Thompson was not armed, police said. But he was wanted.

Lewiston police arrested Thompson last week a day after a foot chase. At the time, he was accused of stealing a vehicle in northern Androscoggin County.

“We caught him the next night and arrested him,” Higgins said. “He went to jail and bailed out… He has been running, and he has been committing numerous other crimes.”

Thompson was arrested Wednesday on charges of theft by unauthorized taking and violating conditions of release. Police said he is a suspect named in warrants on charges that he stole a game warden’s private vehicle and then led officials on a high-speed chase.

After he was arrested, Thompson was taken to Central Maine Medical Center where he was treated for injuries suffered in his jump. Police said it appeared Thompson had sprained at least one of his ankles.

He was moved to the Androscoggin County Jail once he was treated.

Higgins works with the Central Maine Violent Crime Task Force but was acting as a Lewiston police officer when he began searching for Thompson on Wednesday. In their search for Thompson, police and federal agents had been preparing to set up surveillance in hopes of capturing him.

“We knew we had to get this guy into custody,” said Lewiston Deputy Chief Michael Bussiere. “Russ helped save us a lot of additional manpower.”

Thompson was being held without bail Wednesday night.

Dillingham was cleaning up.

“I have a bruise on my chin and a little hole in my pants,” he said. “That’s about the worst of it.”

Police were impressed not only with Dillingham’s quick reaction in helping them subdue their suspect, but also with his prowess as a photographer. Moments after making the tackle of the year, he was back on the job.

“Once we got there, he picked up his camera and started taking more pictures,” Higgins said.

Dillingham did not take the rest of the day off. There were still sports events to photograph and photos to prepare.

But for Wednesday, at least, Dillingham did not have to concern himself with getting something good for the next day’s newspaper. He not only became the news, he photographed it from start to finish.

“It saved me from cruising around all day looking for a feature for the front page,” he said.

The accolades for Dillingham on Wednesday were not just coming from police officers at the agencies that had been searching for Thompson. The people who sign his paycheck were also marveling at his heroics.

“I’ve been doing this a long time, but I’ve never heard of a photographer or a reporter collaring a criminal,” said Sun Journal Executive Editor Rex Rhoades. “We’re all very proud of Russ. He’s a stud.”