Paso Robles inmate walks out of minimum security prison
Inmate Brian Thomas Dill (photo courtesy California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation).
Inmate captured within 24 hours and returned to custody
—Less than 24 hours after Paso Robles native Brian Thomas Dill was reported missing from Pleasant Valley State Prison in Coalinga, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) officials apprehended the inmate who walked away from the minimum-support facility on the same day he was reported missing.
Dill was housed in a facility for low-risk inmates despite having previous criminal convictions, according to reports, including possession of a controlled substance while armed with a loaded firearm and making criminal threats to cause great bodily injury or death. He had two strikes on his record under California’s “Three Strikes” sentencing guidelines.
Dill, 33, was reported missing at noon Monday, Dec. 19, during an institutional count. Law enforcement was immediately notified and in less than an hour, agents from CDCR’s Office of Correctional Safety were dispatched to locate and apprehend Dill.
Later, at approximately 7:30 p.m., someone meeting the description of Brian Dill was reported near the town of Avenal, which is 20 miles from Pleasant Valley State Prison. Avenal Police Department responded to the location, then located and detained the suspect until the Crisis Response Team arrived and verified the suspect as Dill.
Dill was returned to the custody of CDCR shortly thereafter. According to the CDCR, “Since 1977, 99-percent of all offenders who have left an adult institution, camp or community-based program without permission have been apprehended.”
Prison authorities today thanked the Avenal Police Department, Coalinga Police Department, California Highway Patrol, Fresno and Kings County Sherriff agencies, and all the local residents who reported possible information, which led to the apprehension of Dill.
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