Glenn Garvey
Nathan JonesST. JOHNSBURY, Vt. -
Border patrol helicopters don't normally circle the woods around St. Johnsbury, but Thursday the pilot was on a mission to spot two escaped convicts hiding out after an attempted prison break.
Glenn Garvey, 23, of Brandon, and Nathan Jones, 25, of Washington, were supposed to be splitting wood on a work crew. The detail was located just a few hundred yards from Northeast Regional Correctional Facility where the two men were serving time.
But at 10:30 a.m. Thursday police say the two inmates snuck away, escaping into the woods. Corrections officers notified Vt. State police when they realized the duo had disappeared. Border patrol took to the air and State police launched a ground search near West Hill and County Hill roads.
"We immediately had a detective who walked in and another uniformed officer. They followed the tracks until we could get a canine to this area. Once we got to an area where the canine could take over, the canine continued on the track," said Lt. Michael Henry of the Vt. State Police.
The escapees' run from the law ended less than a mile from the prison. After three hours of freedom, they emerged from the woods in handcuffs.
"They didn't try and run," Henry said. "Once the officers encountered them, the suspects gave up at that point. There was no struggle, no resistance at that point. I believe they were probably tired at the end."
Garvey is serving time for burglary and drug possession. Jones is behind bars for a string of DUIs and other driving offenses. The two men were patted down and shipped back to prison.
Garvey had two years left on his sentence, Jones had one. Now the two men are facing felony escape charges. They were processed at the St. Johnsbury barracks and will be arraigned Friday.
