A 16-year old East Northport resident and inmate at Riverhead Correctional Facility was caught by security after he attempted to escape on Wednesday, according to authorities.
Jose Nunez-Garcia, a native of El Salvador who had been at the facility since mid-March, was already facing nearly a half dozen burglary charges for a series of alleged incidents in the Northport area. Following Wednesday's failed escape attempt, he will now also face attempted escape in the first degree, a class E felony.
Authorities said that after hopping one layer of fence in an exercise yard, the teen found himself between multiple layers of security fencing and razor wire.
"This was obviously not a well thought out attempt," said Michael Sharkey, chief of staff with Suffolk County Sheriff's Office. "We don't get attempts like this very often, and just for this very reason. It's not a viable choice to make. It's not something you're going to get away with."
Sharkey said he recalled that over two decades ago, the one individual at Riverhead Correctional Facility did completely escape, though he was apprehended off facility grounds soon after.
"But that was 22 or 23 years ago," he said. "Once (Nunez-Garcia) was between these layers of fencing there is substantially more razor wire."
The Sheriff's Office stated that between the time the East Northport resident scaled the first security fence and the time he was back in the facility, seven minutes had elapsed.
