Inmate who escaped from Rhode Island prison to appear in court

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — A man who escaped from a Rhode Island prison and was on the run for five days before being captured in Massachusetts is scheduled to make an initial appearance before a federal magistrate judge.

James Morales escaped from the Wyatt Detention Facility in Central Falls last Saturday and was captured Thursday in Somerville. Authorities believe he may have tried to rob two banks before he was caught.

Morales is scheduled to appear in U.S. District Court in Providence on an escape charge.

Authorities say Morales escaped New Year’s Eve by climbing a basketball hoop, cutting through a fence and climbing through razor wire. It took hours for correctional officers to notice.

The 35-year-old former Army reservist was being held on charges he stole 16 guns from a U.S. Army Reserve Center in Worcester. 

The Providence Journal reports that three correctional officers and a lieutenant supervisor at Wyatt have been placed on leave as authorities continue to investigate Morales’ escape. 

Morales’ escape was captured on surveillance, but it was more than three hours before guards noticed his absence.