A federal inmate serving life for murder escaped from a Quebec prison Monday – only to be found hundreds of kilometres away in Toronto.
Authorities say they noticed convicted killer Ricardo Vilches had vanished from the minimum security unit at the Archambault Institution in Ste-Anne-des-Plaines, Que., when he wasn’t present during head count at noon.
Correctional Service Canada (CSC) said an arrest warrant was issued for Vilches and he was arrested by Toronto police around 5:45 p.m. that same day.
“The CSC takes all escapes very seriously, as the safety and security of our communities remains the paramount consideration,” said CSC spokesperson Esther Mailhot in an email to Global News.
Vilches was charged with second-degree murder for the 1985 killing of his then-wife Patricia Fierro-Vilches and has spent the last 30 years incarcerated.
Corrections officials say they will investigate the circumstances surrounding Vilches’ escape.
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This comes just a few days after two inmates with a “violent history” escaped from another minimal security institution in Ontario.
Jay Sedore, 70, and Michael Karas, 68, were found in a Toronto hotel shortly before 8 p.m. on Thursday, Ontario Provincial Police said, after escaping the prison hours earlier.
Sedore and Karas were discovered missing during a routine inmate count around 6:30 p.m. at Beaver Creek Institution in Gravenhurst on Feb. 19, CSC said. Both were housed in the minimum-security unit of the multi-level prison.
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Sedore has been serving a life sentence for first-degree murder, while Karas is serving a 15-year, six-month, and 10-day sentence for robbery, forcible confinement and using an imitation firearm.
126 inmates have escaped in 10-year period
The CSC said 126 offenders have escaped prison in the 10-year period from April 1, 2014 to March 31, 2024. The institutional level where the escapes occurred is not available.
Mailhot said the CSC is required to ensure all inmates are placed in institutions that match their security level.
“CSC’s approach to both initial security classification and subsequent security reclassification includes the use of evidence-based assessment instruments along with the professional judgment of specialized staff and psychological assessments, if applicable,” Mailhot told Global News.
In recent years, CSC has strengthened requirements when an offender is being considered for a reclassification to minimum security, according to Mailhot.
“It’s important to note that only those offenders who are assessed as having a low risk to public safety can be placed in a minimum-security institution,” she said.
Mailhot added it should be noted that escapes are rare, as the number of those who escaped federal institutions across the country represent about 0.1 per cent of the total inmate population. The vast majority of escapes are from minimum-security institutions.
The latest figures from the fiscal year 2023-2024 show that 10 inmates managed to escape. That number is 11, five, 11 and 12 for each previous fiscal year.
CSC said it thoroughly examines the circumstances of the incidents with the assistance of local police, and actively works with them in an effort to locate an offender as quickly as possible.
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