ABBEVILLE, La. (KLFY) – An inmate who escaped from the Vermilion Parish Correctional Center Friday morning has been captured, according to Sheriff Mike Couvillon.
Carl Robert Striggow, 26, of Abbeville, was arrested without incident around 12:30 p.m. The sheriff credits his deputies and K9 teams for quickly catching the escapee.
Carl Striggow was on work duty around 10 a.m. in the Vermilion Parish Correctional Center’s garden when he decided to make a run for it. Sheriff’s deputies formed a more than 20-acre perimeter surrounding the jail as they hunted for Striggow.
With airboats in the water and a chopper in the air, Sheriff’s deputies, Lafayette marshals, and local police helped in the search for 26-year-old Carl Striggow, who was in jail on a simple burglary charge. “That’s why we call them ‘riskees’ and not trustees,” said Vermilion Parish Sheriff, Mike Couvillon.
Not long after, sheriff’s units began speeding down Airport Road in the direction of the jail. KLFY reporter Dalfred Jones followed deputies through a cattle pasture to a wooded area, where K9 officers sniffed Striggow out and found him hiding in the bushes.
Striggow was originally arrested on September 10, 2015, for simple burglary and had a $50,000 bond.
Couvillon said his Deputies set up a perimeter around the jail and deployed the K9 teams immediately after Striggow escaped.
Striggow will face the additional charge of simple escape, and Couvillon explained even more charges are possible, pending an ongoing investigation. He will no longer be eligible of ever working in any other jail programs.
Colonel Kirk J Frith, the warden of the parish jail, said authorities are reviewing if any of their current jail procedures failed and led to the escape.
Several law enforcement agencies assisted the sheriff’s office in the search including USK9 INC., Kaplan Police, Abbeville Police, Lafayette City Marshall K9, Lafayette Sheriff Office K9, Angola K9, Maurice Police, Erath Police, Louisiana State Police, T and M Aviation, and the U.S. Marshals Service.
KLFY received several emails and phone calls from residents about the incident Friday morning before authorities confirmed the escape.
Residents living near the jail said they received an automated call from the sheriff’s office about an expected escapee with instructions to lock doors and to report any suspicious activity.
Vermilion Parish Public Schools Superintendent Jerome Puyau said all schools in Abbeville and Erath were placed on a temporary lockdown during the search.
School officials locked all exterior doors and implemented extra security measures, but classes were being held as normal.Watch video below of deputies hauling the escaped inmate back to jailMobile App Users Click Here To Watch
