Escaped Fresno County inmate caught in Sanger

An inmate who walked away from the Fresno County Jail while on work detail Monday was arrested Tuesday by Sanger police.

Sebastian Hernandez Gonzales, 21, was found by police living in a homeless encampment near Academy and California avenues. Sanger police were investigating the encampment and recognized Gonzales as he was getting out of one of the tents. He was arrested and turned over to Fresno County sheriff’s detectives.

Gonzales was returned to jail, where he was booked on a felony charge of escaping custody.

Gonzales, who had been in jail since Dec. 17 for vehicle theft, was assigned to the Utility Worker Crew, cleaning the main lobby, when he fled on Monday. Patrol deputies were immediately notified and began to search the streets for him.

Sheriff’s officials said Gonzales has not given detectives a clear explanation on why he fled the jail.

This story was originally published March 17, 2015 at 4:36 PM with the headline "Escaped Fresno County inmate caught in Sanger."