Inmate impersonates cellmate to get early release from Washington jail, cops say
UPDATE: The 26-year-old inmate has been arrested and returned to jail, according to the Cowlitz County Sheriff’s Office.
The original story is below.
A 26-year-old man pretended to be his cellmate to get out of a Washington jail, deputies said.
Now authorities are searching for the man after he was wrongly released from the Cowlitz County Corrections Department on Monday, April 17, the Cowlitz County Sheriff’s Office said in a Facebook post.
Before he fled from the jail, corrections officers were looking for his cellmate to let him know he was going to be released that day, deputies said.
But all three cellmates were sleeping when the officers went to the cell with the news. Instead, the man answered for his cellmate and went with the corrections officer to be processed out of jail, deputies said.
He was given the other inmate’s belongings, including his clothing, keys, wallet, debit card and ID, deputies said. He’s also accused of signing paperwork pretending to be the inmate, forging his name, deputies said.
Jail staff didn’t realize the wrong inmate had been released until the correct man asked about his release. Workers said the two men had “similar physical features,” deputies said.
Now authorities are searching for him.
He left the jail wearing a blue sweatshirt, a black shirt, gray sweatpants and brown slippers.
A warrant was issued for his arrest on charges of second-degree escape, first-degree criminal impersonation, forgery, and second-degree and third-degree theft.
This story was originally published April 19, 2023 at 9:43 AM with the headline "Inmate impersonates cellmate to get early release from Washington jail, cops say."
