Inmate Trent Thompson escapes from prison by climbing fence

A 22-year-old inmate serving a decades-long sentence for robbery and assault escaped from a West Texas prison by climbing a fence — but was captured hours later about 250 miles away, officials said.

The Texas Department of Criminal Justice on Sunday shared a photo of fugitive Trent Thompson wearing a paisley-patterned sweatshirt with his hands cuffed behind his back following his arrest.

The agency said the escapee was busted around 11:15 a.m. Tuesday in the city of Coleman near Abilene and will face felony escape charges.

Thompson, who had been convicted of three counts of aggravated robbery and aggravated assault on a public servant, had last been seen at the Formby Unit lockup in Plainview at about 11:14 p.m. Saturday.

After climbing over a fence at the prison, officials believe that Thompson stole a vehicle, Department of Criminal Justice spokeswoman Amanda Hernandez said.

Law enforcement officials sent out an alert about the prison break at 7 a.m. Sunday.

By 11:15 a.m. that day — almost 12 hours to the minute after his escape — Thompson was tracked down and apprehended in Coleman, 250 miles southeast of Plainview.

During the pursuit, Thompson was accused of ramming a Coleman County Sheriff’s Department vehicle. He was arrested after trying to flee on foot.

The 22-year-old convict was serving time stemming from a February 2022 armed robbery of a Coleman convenience store, followed by a vehicle theft and police chase in March, reported the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal.

Before Saturday’s prison break, Thompson’s projected release date was 2052.

Under Texas law, a charge of felony escape is punishable by up to 10 years in prison.