Female Inmate Convicted In IE Attempts Custody Escape

SAN DIEGO COUNTY, CA — A female inmate who was convicted in the Inland Empire of second-degree robbery walked away from a community reentry program in San Diego County, but she was back in custody Friday.

Heather Princess Gutierrez, 21, was at the Custody to Community Transitional Reentry Program in San Diego when she walked away from the facility around 7:20 p.m. Wednesday, according to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

After a search by prison officials, she was tracked down and arrested around 10:30 p.m. Thursday. She was taken to the California Institution for Women in Chino, and will be ineligible for the CCTRP program for at least 10 years, according to prison officials.

It's not clear where or how officials found Gutierrez. Her case is being assessed by the district attorney for consideration of escape charges, officials said.

Gutierrez was admitted from San Bernardino County in September 2021 and sentenced to two years for second-degree robbery. She had been allowed to stay at the CCTRP since February 2022. She was scheduled to be released in July.