Convicted murderer captured after escape from Maine prison
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Arnold Nash, 65, has been found on Tuesday after escaping from a minimum security prison in Maine last week, officials said.
A convicted murderer who escaped from a Maine prison last week -- his third escape -- was captured Tuesday, officials said, adding that he may have done so to get more prison time.
Arnold Nash, 65, who had escaped from the Mountain View Correctional Facility (a minimum security prison) in Charleston last Thursday, was found along Route 15 in Dover-Foxcroft, about 75 miles north of Augusta, Maine's WMTW-TV reported. Charleston is about 12 miles southeast of Dover-Foxcroft.
It appeared Nash wanted to be caught, Maine Department of Corrections Commissioner Joseph Fitzpatrick told CentralMaine.com.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}“Certainly, the way he was wandering along the roadway, he didn’t seem to be hiding at the point he was discovered,” Fitzpatrick said. “This is the best outcome we could have hoped for.”
Nash was found along Route 15 in Dover-Foxcroft, about 75 miles north of Augusta. (Maine Department of Corrections)
Nash, found dehydrated and exhausted, surrendered peacefully, ending a five-day manhunt, the report said.
“Certainly, the way he was wandering along the roadway, he didn’t seem to be hiding at the point he was discovered. This is the best outcome we could have hoped for.”
Sgt. Michael Gould of the Piscataquis County Sheriff's Office took Nash into custody.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Gould reportedly told WGME-TV that Nash said he wanted to escape because he wanted more prison time added to his sentence.
Fitzpatrick said Monday that "it was certainly possible" that Nash committed the crime of escape to avoid being released from prison, "the only home he's known for decades," according to CentralMaine.com
Fitpatrick said Nash will be charged with a new crime of escape, that "would in all likelihood lead to new prison sentence," the report said. The commissioner said he has authorized an internal review to ensure that Nash would be properly evaluated before his transition to a less secure facility.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}CONVICTED MURDERER ESCAPES FROM MAINE PRISON; HAD 2 PREVIOUS ESCAPES, OFFICIALS SAY
Nash, convicted in 1992, was serving a 45-year sentence for the 1991 murder and robbery of his neighbor, Wilfred Gibeault, 58, a disabled Korean War veteran, the Portland Press Herald reported.
He was scheduled to be released Dec. 14 this year, which would be 18 years before the end of his original sentence, the paper reported, citing a Maine Department of Corrections new release.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Nash showed no signs of violence or agression during his most recent prison sentence, and had two minor infractions in 26 years, CentralMaine.com reported.
In 1981, Nash escaped from the Maine State Prison, where he was serving time for burglary, the Bangor Daily News reported.
In 1973, when Nash was 19, he escaped from the Maine Correctional Center in Windham, while serving time for larceny, the Herald reported.