The Eau Claire County Sheriff's department says it has called off a search for a sex offender who escaped a SWAT team raid last night (May 31) near Augusta.

35-year-old Donald L. Steffenson is wanted on felony charges of first degree sexual assault and intimidating a witness. Officers tell us he was wearing full body camouflage. He weighs about 230 pounds and is clean shaven. If you see him, call 911 right away.

Steffenson was last seen running north three miles south of Highway G near the intersection of Karow Road and Kelly Road -- that's about 2 miles northeast of Augusta.

Investigators say the SWAT team broke into a house, trying to arrest him, just after 8 last night, but Steffenson took off into the woods.

At least 30 officers from multiple departments searched for him. They used 2 canine units and a bloodhound. Officers also used thermal imaging cameras and night vision, but called off the search around 12:15 a.m. this morning (June 1).

Investigators say they've been trying to catch Steffenson for a while, and moved in last night after identifying him.

“He was actually in the backyard drinking some beer, having a party back there with a fire. When we pulled in, he had taken off running out back,” say Sgt. Rod Stearns with the Eau Claire Co. Sheriff’s department.

Stearns says Steffenson cut himself on a barbed-wire fence. The bloodhound did pick up his trail at one point, but eventually lost it in the dense woods.