Lompoc community reaction to latest Federal Honor Farm escapes
Lompoc Police are reassuring the community after the latest escape of inmates from the Lompoc Federal Penitentiary Honor Farm over the weekend.
Jose Guzman and Emilio Alonzo-Plata were reported missing Saturday night with their escape made known to local law enforcement.
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“The information they provided us on the two individuals was that there was no immediate threat to the public”, says Lompoc Police Sgt. Kevin Martin, “these subjects were brought into custody on a federal level for narcotics violations, for importing them into the United States, the act of fleeing the prison is a federal violation and the FBI and U.S. Marshal will be involved in tracking and locating the subjects.”
Four inmates at the Lompoc Federal Prison Honor Farm have “walked away” from the minimum security facility since September.
“That’s kind of scary”, says Lompoc resident Tami Kerrigan, “I thought it was like a minimum security prison but still I wouldn’t want people, you know criminals, walking off, down the road here we are, its close enough, our home, so yeah, not a good thing.”
Others in the community say the problem is more than just a few so-called “non-violent” prison inmates on the run for the border.
“Yeah we have kids you know, this is town is made up of, you know, commuters and retirees, its family based”, says Lompoc resident Aszur Jamison, “yeah, to have people running around on the loose, its really scary.”
“You hear about it every once in awhile”, adds Lompoc resident Steven Vincent, “Los Prietos Boys Camp, they’ve got escapes from there too, so its these minimum security facilities that are not being watched very closely, there may not be the funding for that.”
Neither Guzman or Alonzo-Plata are thought to be still in the area.
“When you consider the number of people that fled the prison in comparison the number of people that they house at the prison its a very, very small minority that’s actually done this”, Sgt. Martin says, “I think that the Prison does a very good job at what they do, and if those individuals are still in the United States I think that the FBI and Marshal’s Office will locate and bring them back into custody.”
