Cops: Escaped inmate returns, tries to free others

FAIRBANKS, Alaska -- A minimum-security prisoner who escaped from a halfway house in Alaska came back three hours later, but it wasn't to turn himself in.

State troopers say 20-year-old Joshua Yaska returned with an SUV and tried to help other inmates flee the facility in Fairbanks.

Staff members say Yaska was spotted leaving on a bike just after 1 a.m. Sunday. Troopers say he returned at 4:20 a.m. and tried to "aid in the escape of other inmates."

Authorities say he tried to strike a halfway house employee with the vehicle. Troopers say they caught up with him that night after he broke into a relative's home.