Sex offender who escaped from prison in Texas has been captured, officials say
By Paradise Afshar and Andy Rose, CNN
(CNN) — The convicted sex offender who escaped Sunday from a prison near Houston was captured in a nearby county on Monday morning, officials said.
Robert Yancy Jr. was taken into custody in Matagorda County, about 45 miles southwest of the Brazoria County prison, and now faces felony escape charges, authorities said.
Two other people believed to be involved in his escape were arrested in Victoria, Texas, by the Office of Inspector General, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice said in a statement Monday. Yancy’s mother, Leonor Priestle, was charged with permitting or facilitating escape, and Russell Williams was charged with criminal intent to escape, the statement said.
Yancy is serving a life sentence without parole at the Clemens Unit in Brazoria for the continuous sexual abuse of a child, according to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. The facility has a capacity of nearly 900 inmates.
He escaped at about 3:38 p.m. Sunday in a white Nissan Versa, the sheriff’s office said on Facebook. His mother was also in the vehicle, the Brazoria County Precinct 4 Constable’s Office said in a statement on social media.
The Nissan’s license plate was entered into a statewide plate reader system, which alerted authorities that the vehicle was spotted at about 6:09 p.m. in Victoria County, about 110 miles west of Brazoria, the sheriff’s office said.
The Victoria Police Department said its officers conducted a traffic stop at about 8:25 p.m. of a white Nissan related to the escaped inmate. The vehicle’s only occupant was a woman, who was taken into custody on an outstanding warrant related to Yancy’s escape, police said.
The department did not release her identity or information about her connection with Yancy at the time.
The Brazoria County Sheriff’s Office did not provide details on the second arrest. CNN has reached out to law enforcement for more information.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
The-CNN-Wire
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