SEQUOYAH COUNTY, Oklahoma — Sequoyah County deputies have helped capture an escaped inmate near Vian on Wednesday, Sept. 18.
Authorities were looking for Lester Hampton, who was wanted for escape from the Department of Corrections (DOC). Officials said he walked away from a DOC halfway house last week near Ponca City, which is more than 150 miles away.
Deputies got word at around 1 a.m. that he was in the Sequoyah County area, but officials were unsuccessful in finding him. A few hours later, another tip got to officials saying Hampton was hiding in a wooded area near Blackgum Harvesttime Church.
Authorities brought out the thermal imaging drone and flew it above the area, but Hampton was already gone.
An off-duty dispatcher for Sequoyah County later saw a man matching Hampton's description walking near McQuicks and immediately called it in. Hampton fled into yet another wooded area but was captured before he could get any further.
Hampton was initially jailed for burglary and is now being held at the Sequoyah County detention center.
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