jail bars

STANLEY, Wis. (Midwest Communications) - Authorities are trying to determine how 2 inmates escaped at the state prison in Stanley last month, by showing false paperwork to staff members. The 2 men were back in custody a day or two later. And Police Chief Roy Frederickson tells the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel there’s no evidence that state workers helped with the release. Others told columnist Dan Bice the inmates might have gotten help from friends or relatives on the outside. State corrections’ officials won’t say who the inmates are, or what they’re in prison for. But one reportedly had up to 50 years left on his sentence. Fredrickson said another inmate spoke up about the escapes, and the two were nabbed when they reported to their probation agents.

The chief is conducting a criminal investigation, and he says it will be completed in a couple weeks – depending on how much cooperation he gets from the inmates. Until it’s finished, corrections’ and prison union officials say they won’t comment further. Corrections’ spokeswoman Melissa Roberts refused to say whether prison employees could be punished for not recognizing the false paperwork the inmates presented. The state bought the Stanley Prison in northwest Wisconsin in 2001 from a private firm. It has 1,500 inmates and 400 employees.

(From WTAQ-Green Bay)