Inmate apprehended in Modesto after walking away from El Dorado County fire camp
An inmate who walked from a fire camp in El Dorado County was captured last week in Modesto.
According to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Edgar Benitez walked away from the Growlersberg Conservation Camp in El Dorado County on July 24. He was discovered missing from his assigned housing area at 11 p.m.
The camp is jointly operated by the Department of Corrections and CalFire, and provides inmate labor crews for fire and maintenance-related projects.
Benitez was apprehended at 4:30 p.m. the following afternoon by authorities who located him in front of a Modesto home “utilizing various investigative techniques”, the release said.
He was taken into custody without incident.
Benitez was taken to Sierra Conservation Center in Jamestown, and his case will be referred for consideration of charges, authorities said.
Initially, Benitez was received from Los Angeles County on Dec. 26, 2017 on a sentence of nine years for driving under the influence causing bodily injury or death.
Since 1977, 99 percent of all offenders who have left an adult institution, camp or community-based program without permission have been apprehended, the CDCR said in the release.
This story was originally published August 1, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
