A 41-year-old inmate serving time for assault walked away from a Los Angeles County conservation camp on Saturday, setting off a multi-agency search in the high desert community of Valyermo, authorities said.
Staff at Fenner Canyon Conservation Camp discovered the man missing around 8 a.m. during a routine head count and alerted law enforcement.
Missing Inmate Identified
Officials identified the inmate as Francisco Cervantes, 41, who is serving a five-year, eight-month sentence for assault with force likely to produce great bodily injury, according to KTLA.
Cervantes was last seen at Fenner Canyon in an orange shirt, orange pants, and black boots, authorities said. Officials believe he may now be wearing gray civilian clothing and white tennis shoes.
He is described as about 5 feet 7 inches tall and 194 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes. The public has been asked to contact local law enforcement or Special Agent Lomer at 909-285-8738 with any information on his whereabouts.
Fenner Canyon Camp And CDCR Track Record
Fenner Canyon Conservation Camp #41 is jointly operated by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) and CAL FIRE and houses inmate fire crews that respond to wildfires and work on conservation projects, according to CDCR.
CDCR noted in a news release that since 1977 about 99 percent of people who have left an adult institution, camp or community-based program without permission have been apprehended, a statistic the department has repeated in recent walkaway notices.
Camp staff and CDCR’s Office of Correctional Safety are working with local law enforcement on the search for Cervantes.
How To Help
KTLA reports that CDCR did not immediately say whether prosecutors would seek escape charges in connection with the walkaway.
Anyone who sees Cervantes is urged to call 911, contact local law enforcement or provide tips to CDCR’s Office of Correctional Safety as directed by authorities.
