Enfield Prison Escapee Captured in Georgia

ENFIELD, CT — A 10-day search for an inmate who escaped from a medium-security prison in Enfield ended Wednesday afternoon when he was apprehended by authorities in Georgia.

Jerry Mercado, 25, who had escaped from the Carl Robinson Correctional Institution on Jan. 7, was taken into custody at a gas station in Canton, Ga. A tip received by the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force was quickly communicated with law enforcement in Georgia, which led to Mercado’s location, Connecticut Department of Correction director of external affairs Karen Martucci said in a written statement.

A Canton police officer was contacted around 3:45 p.m. Wednesday from the Connecticut State Police, who told the patrol sergeant they confirmed Mercado made a phone call earlier in the day from a Chevron gas station.

Canton officers responded to the area, and verified that Mercado was previously in the store and obtained a good physical description for him. The sergeant also reached out to representatives at Action Church, who said Mercado stayed at its emergency warming shelter Tuesday evening and believed he was planning to return to the facility on Wednesday.

A store clerk at the Chevron station called 9-1-1 to report Mercado was back at the store, and a patrol officer was able to see him inside the store. Other police arrived at the gas station and took Mercado into custody without incident.

Canton, Ga. is approximately 1,035 miles from Enfield.

Mercado is believed to have escaped by clinging to the underside of a work truck that was leaving the prison premises sometime in the early afternoon of Jan. 7. DOC officials have said they believe he ran about four miles down Shaker Road onto Elm street to a Burger King, where he is believed to have entered a vehicle.

Once returned to Connecticut, Mercado, who had been serving time for burglary and stealing a firearm, will be transported to the Northern Correctional Institution, where he will be referred for placement on the agency’s highest level of supervision known as Administrative Segregation, Martucci said.

"We credit the diligent efforts by the Department of Correction’s Fugitive Investigation Unit and our partners from the Connecticut Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection, Hartford Police Department, the U.S. Marshals, and the Canton Georgia Police Department for their collaboration during this ten-day search," Martucci said.

Patch Editor Kristal Dixon contributed to this story.
Photo courtesy of Connecticut Department of Correction