Escaped mental patient accused in double murder captured

A man accused in the 2006 murder of his mother and stepfather has been captured in a Tenn. hotel after escaping from the S.C. mental health facility where he was committed.

The Department of Mental Health, which would not name the man because of privacy laws, said the patient was captured Friday morning at a hotel off Interstate 40 west of Nashville, Tenn. However, the Oconee County Sheriff's office said in a news release that the patient was Jason Carter.

Carter, 39, was accused of killing his mother and stepfather and locking himself in a basement with their bodies in March of 2006, reports CBS affiliate WSPA. He was found not guilty by reason of insanity and then hospitalized.

Department of Mental Health officials say he was noticed missing from the Columbia Care Center in northeast Columbia Thursday between 10 a.m. and 11 a.m., reports the station. A Chevy van was noticed missing from the facility around the same time of the escape, reports WSPA.

In a statement, the Oconee County Sheriff’s Office said they were unsure how he escaped.

Department of Mental Health officials say they don't know how he got the money for a hotel but don't believe Carter committed other crimes. The department says the escape is under investigation.

A department spokesman told the station patients in Carter's program are supposed to be supervised constantly by staff.