Man charged with escape in transport from a halfway house after being found in Middletown

ajc.com

A 42-year-old man charged with escape after fleeing a Warren County community halfway house vehicle early Monday morning was found hiding in a dumpster at a Middletown hotel, according to Middletown police.

An officer was flagged down about 4:20 a.m. in the area of Interstate 75 and Ohio 122 by someone who said he worked from for Talbert House and a man he was transporting had taken his phone and fled on foot, according to the police report.

David Johnson. MIDDLETOWN CITY JAILo

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The suspect, David Johnson, ran westbound into the woods at Ohio 122 and Union Road, according to Talbert House worker. He said Johnson was at the facility as part of a parole agreement.

Middletown officers and K9 unit tracked Johnson to a dumpster on the southside of the Days Inn parking lot on Commerce Drive, where Johnson was taken into custody. Johnson told officers he threw the cell phone off a bridge, but officers were able to retrieve it.

After he was checked out at Kettering Health Middletown, Johnson was booked into the city Jail and charged with escape and theft.

Talbert House in Turtle Creek Twp. is a community corrections program that is not a locked facility, but clients are monitored and leave only for sanctioned events such as doctor’s appointments, employment, probation or parole meeting, according to Teri Nau, vice president of community and donor relations. It is considered an AWAL if the person leaves in transport, she said.

“Talbert House is fully cooperating with officials, and we made a report. Safety and security is the number one issue for our clients and the community. So we are cooperating with law enforcement,” Nau said.

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