Escaped inmate from Forks prison has been apprehended

Update: Mark Vannausdle has been captured less than two miles from the prison he escaped in Forks, Wash.

The News Tribune reports that Vannausdle was apprehended Tuesday morning. He was taken without resisting.

Vannausdle was spotted walking along a rural road by a construction worker about 1.5 miles from the prison. That worker immediately contacted the Inmate Recovery Team and drove them to where he saw the inmate. The team chased Vanausdle and took him into custody.

The Tribune also reports that Vannausdle was previously convicted of attempting to escape the now-closed prison on McNeil Island in 2004.

Original story:

A 60-year-old inmate escaped from the Olympic Corrections Center in Forks Sunday morning.

The escape was made less than two years away from his tentative release on a 20-year sentence.

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Mark David Vannausdle, 60, was convicted of assault and robbery with firearm enhancements in 2002. He was serving a 20-year sentence and was due to be released in 2021.

According to Janelle Guthrie with the Washington State Department of Corrections, Vannausdle made a run for it while heading to breakfast at the Olympic Corrections Center. The incident happened at 7:08 a.m. Sunday, Aug. 11, while he was between his cell and the dining facility.

There is an active search underway.

“The facility has deployed an inmate recovery team and is working with local law enforcement who are also assisting with the search,” Guthrie said. “…He’s on foot. We are looking for him actively.”

Guthrie said that she was unaware if Vannausdle has any family or friends in the Forks area. She said that he committed his crimes in Pierce County.

“We want to encourage people that if they do see Mark David Vannausdle, not to contact him directly, rather, call 911,” Guthrie said.

People can contact 911 or the Olympics Corrections Center at 360-374-7000 if they see Vannausdle.

DOC

Vannausdle is 60 years old, 5’11”, Caucasian, 181 pounds, with light brown hair and hazel eyes.

The Olympic Corrections Center in Forks is listed as a minimum custody facility that opened in 1968. About 380 male inmates are held there.

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