Prisoner granted 4 hours of freedom re-arrested after failing to return to custody

UPDATE: The Kings County Sheriff’s Office reported around 1:30 p.m. Thursday that the inmate has been located and re-arrested.

ORIGINAL STORY: A Kings County prisoner who was granted four hours of freedom by a court failed to return to custody, according to the Kings County Sheriff’s Office.

Johnny Juan Castaneda, 43, was granted a compassionate release and left the jail at 1 p.m. Wednesday., according to Kings County Sheriff’s Office Cmdr. Mark Bevins. Castaneda was supposed to return to the Kings County Jail at 5 p.m. but never showed up. There is a warrant out for his arrest.

Castaneda is described as Hispanic, 5-foot-10 and 163 pounds. He has black hair, brown eyes and tattoos on his neck. His last known address is in Hanford.

He was initially arrested Sunday on suspicion of domestic violence.

Bevins could not say why Castaneda was granted a release, but compassionate releases are usually granted for prisoners who are terminally ill, or who have other extenuating circumstances, such as a death in the family.

Bevins said compassionate releases in Kings County are rare, but prisoners usually return on time. “I can’t even think of a time in recent memory that we’ve had one,” he said.

Anyone who knows the whereabouts of Castaneda is asked to call the sheriff’s office at 559-852-2720.

This story was originally published August 8, 2019 at 12:58 PM.