John Matthews
WMAL.com
JESSUP, MD — (WMAL) An escaped prisoner from Delaware who had eluded police for more than five days after running from a prison van was recaptured Wednesday night, not far from where he made his escape.
David Watson was found at around 9:40 pm hiding in an 18-inch drainage pipe in a wooded area near Dorsey Run Road in Jessup, hours after he had been spotted wearing a white hard hat and a safety vest. Police say Watson had stolen those items over the past few days and wore them in an effort to “blend in.”
After Watson was sighted Wednesday morning, police searched the area with helicopters, bloodhounds and personnel from a variety of law enforcement agencies. They also checked out the drain pipe where Watson was eventually found, but he managed to elude capture by day. Police using night-vision equipment eventually caught up with Watson, who surrendered without incident. He was reported to be in good condition.
Watson, 28, escaped last Friday from a transport van at the Clifton T. Perkins Hospital Center in Jessup, while in the custody of guards from the Wicomico County Detention Center. He was in the process of being taken there for a psychiatric evaluation, and had somehow broken free of his handcuffs and leg shackles, running off when he exited the van.
He is serving a sentence of more than 100 years in a correctional facility in Delaware for attempted murder, and he had been charged in Wicomico County for attempted murder of law enforcement officers, before a judge there ruled him not mentally competent to stand trial on charges he had fired into the homes of police officers.
Watson would have had difficulty “blending in.” He has many tattoos, including between his eyes and under his right eye. The word “evil” is tattooed on the back of his neck. “Sin” is tattooed on his hand. He was wearing all-white clothing at the time of his escape.
Copyright 2017 by WMAL.com. All Rights Reserved. (PHOTO: Howard County Police)
