![]() Joliet Prisons Whiteside columns The man who tried to break into Six inmates escape |
Pub. Date: 13-Feb-1990 Tuesday
Manhunt focuses on ChicagoJOLIET -- A manhunt for five escapees from the Joliet Correctional Facility focused on the Chicago area Monday, the second day of the search, as officials reviewed procedures at the maximum-security prison. A sixth escapee was captured late Sunday near his cousin's home in Chicago, and the five inmates still at large -- described as "extremely dangerous" -- were believed to have also headed for the city, said spokesman Nic Howell of the Illinois Department of Corrections. The inmates -- three of whom were imprisoned on murder convictions -- may have ties in Chicago or may simply hope to lose themselves in the large metropolitan area, he said. But authorities have no specific leads, he said, noting the recaptured inmate had provided little information. Early Sunday, the inmates apparently cut through bars on their cells, broke a window and cut through bars outside it, and then climbed a low fence and fled the prison undetected, Howell said. About 100 corrections officers and officials were involved in the case -- either helping with the search or participating in the internal investigation and security review at the prison. The prison houses 1,300 inmates, 500 more than it was intended to hold, but Howell said he didn't know if the crowded conditions contributed to the escape. The six prisoners were last accounted for at 4:55 a.m. Sunday and an inmate count did not come up short until 7 a.m., Howell said. The men escaped from segregation cells, where they were being kept because of disciplinary problems, he said. Four of the men were doubled up, two to a cell, and the other two were alone in their cells. Tommy Munoz of Chicago was captured just after 5:30 p.m. by prison authorities who had staked out his cousin's house on the Southwest Side of the city, some 38 miles east of the prison, Howell said. Munoz was returned to the facility, where he was serving a two-year sentence for narcotics violations and intimidation, the spokesman said. Still at large were:
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