Authorities located inmate who left state fire camp

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (AP) - Officials with the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department say they have captured an inmate who abandoned a state fire camp.

According to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, 27-year-old Julio Cesar Lugo was reported missing from the Oak Glen Conservation Camp, about 40 miles (64 kilometers) west of Riverside, early Friday after an informal head count.

The Press-Enterprise reports (https://bit.ly/2wSwt44 ) sheriff deputies found Lugo in a backyard in Banning on Monday. Banning police and a K-9 unit assisted the deputies with the search.

Lugo was sentenced to two years in prison after he was convicted for auto theft. Officials say he was granted permission to join a Cal Fire hand crew for the wildfire season as part of an alternative sentencing program.

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Information from: The Press-Enterprise, https://www.pe.com