Snoqualmie juvenile detention center inmates recaptured after search
Nov 26, 2023, 7:52 PM | Updated: Nov 27, 2023, 3:56 pm
Echo Glen Children's Center (MyNorthwest file photo)
(MyNorthwest file photo)
King County officials say three inmates who escaped from Echo Glen Juvenile Detention Center in Snoqualmie on Sunday night have been recaptured.
The juveniles are 16-17 years old.
More incidents at Echo Glen: Echo Glen juvenile escapees appear in Court, 4 charged as adults
Police from the Snoqualmie Police Department and deputies from the King County Sheriff’s Office were searching the area.
At 6:15 p.m. police got a 911 call from the center at 33010 SE 99th Street in Snoqualmie regarding missing juveniles.
King County Sheriff’s Office, the Washington State Patrol, and other agencies were involved in the search.
Law enforcement was using K9 teams and drones in the search.
“No staff or youth were injured during the incident,” The Washington Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) said in a statement Sunday night.
Echo Glen staff found the first juvenile within minutes after the escape, according to the sheriff’s office.
More from Rantz: State knew of escape plan before Echo Glen inmates broke out
The second juvenile was found at 8:02 p.m. The third juvenile was found in the woods southwest of the main campus at 8:32 p.m., according to DCYF.
All three inmates were found to have probable cause to charge them with escape in the first degree in court Monday. Their case hasn’t been referred to the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office yet, but spokesperson Casey McNerthey said that this is a normal process.
This incident comes after other escapes that prompted promises of action by officials. Echo Glen had to deal with escapes for more than a decade, but this one marks the fourth in just a two-year span.
