Woman hid from cops in suitcase — but first they had to get past the pit bulls, police say

A woman was given a trip to jail after she packed herself in a suitcase — in an attempt to hide from the cops, Pennsylvania police say.

Facing drug charges, Terri Downs-Hayes has evaded officers with the Westmoreland County Sheriff’s Department and missed criminal hearings since October, police say, according to CBS Pittsburgh. But then the 43-year-old woman was captured on Christmas Eve.

Police say an anonymous caller suggested Downs-Hayes was at a home in Van Meter — and officers found the house’s door “had been fortified with 2-by-4 (wood) beams,” according to TribLive.

Officers got inside the home, which had three people inside, police say, and soon found two pit bulls standing in front of a closet in a bedroom, TribLive reported.

Once they got past the pit bulls, police say, “Downs-Hayes was found hiding in a large zipped suitcase inside the closet,” WTAE4 reported.

CBS Pittsburgh recounted the bizarre sequence of events.

“First, hands appeared. A second later, Downs-Hayes emerged,” according to CBS Pittsburgh. “(Downs-Hayes) somehow stuffed herself inside the travel bag in a desperate effort to evade detection and capture.”

As reported by TribLive, “Downs-Hayes is now in the county prison on a bench warrant for failing to appear. Police said they are considering filing complaints against the people inside the home Monday for hindering apprehension of a fugitive.”