Escaped California Prisoner Recaptured in Mexico, Released by Magistrate
Miguel Banuelos, a prisoner who escaped from the Washington Ridge Conservation Camp in Northern California, was captured in Mexico but subsequently released by a Mexican magistrate. Banuelos, serving a seven-year sentence for drug-related charges, walked away from the prison camp on July 4. He was located in Tijuana, Mexico, two days later, but despite being taken into custody, he was released on July 10. The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation is seeking public assistance to locate Banuelos, who remains at large. The reasons for his release by Mexican authorities have not been disclosed.