Four federal prison inmates have been charged after law enforcement say they repeatedly escaped prison only to return each time with contraband.
The men, 34-year-old Julian Lemus, Robert Young, 45, Leo Martinez, 25, and 35-year-old Silvstre Rico were nabbed by U.S. Marshals last week as they escaped from the Beaumont Federal Correctional Institute complex in Texas, according to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.
Marshals said that they began surveillance after “repeated reports” of prisoners continuing to escape and bring back contraband such as whiskey and cellphones into the complex, which houses both low- and medium-security inmates.
“Investigators observed 4 males leave the prison grounds and cut through a neighboring ranch. The inmates ran when they saw the Law Enforcement Officers step out of the brush. All 4 inmates were quickly taken into custody,” the statement reads.
It remains unclear where the contraband items came from or how the prisoners were escaping from the facility itself.
The four men were charged with escape.
