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Escaped Vancouver Island prisoners recaptured in Esquimalt: RCMP

Zachary Armitage (left) and James Lee Busch (right) escaped the William Head Institution on Sunday evening, RCMP say. Handout/B.C. RCMP

Two inmates who escaped from a minimum-security prison near Victoria this weekend were recaptured by police on Tuesday, police say.

The two men managed to break out of the William Head Institution around 7 p.m. on Sunday, according to West Shore RCMP.

The Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) said it realized the men were missing during an 11 p.m. count of inmates on Sunday.

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On Tuesday night, the West Shore RCMP said James Lee Busch and Zachary Armitage were spotted by an off-duty RCMP officer in Esquimalt.

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The officer reportedly contacted authorities, and the inmates were arrested by Victoria police.

According to police, Busch, 42, was serving an indeterminate sentence for second-degree murder and assault. He has previously served time for aggravated sexual assault and escaping custody.

WATCH (February 2015): Escaped Applewood firebomber arrested in Victoria 

Armitage, 30, was serving a nearly 14-year sentence for robbery, aggravated assault and other offences, police said.

Police had described both men as “dangerous.”

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William Head’s assistant warden, Anthony Baldo, told Global News that both men had been assessed by the CSC and “cascaded” down to a minimum-security institution to prepare them for reintegration into society.

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