Authorities Capture Inmate Who Escaped From Ponca City Facility

A man who walked away from a halfway house in Ponca City on Sept. 7 was captured by authorities on Tuesday.

The Department of Corrections said inmate Lester Hampton had walked out and was last seen that morning at the Bridgeway halfway house.

The Sequoyah County Sheriff's Office said the search led them to an area north of Vian on Tuesday where a tip pointed authorities to an area near Blackgum Harvesttime Church.

The sheriff's office said authorities surrounded a wooded area where Hampton was believed to be hiding and flew a drone with thermal capabilities overhead, but he had escaped just before they arrived in the area.

A 911 dispatcher who was leaving work spotted someone walking who matched Hampton's description and called deputies, who found and arrested him after he ran through the woods again.

“They didn't hesitate to get up and leave their families in the middle of the night to help us capture this guy,” said Sheriff Larry Lane about the authorities involved in the arrest.