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