UPDATED: Escaped inmate arrested near Azusa 28 years after disappearance

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An inmate who escaped from a work furlough program 28 years ago while serving time for a burglary conviction 28 years ago was re-captured Thursday near Azusa, where he had been living under an assumed identity, officials said.
Carlos Campo, 50, “who was convicted of second-degree burglary in Los Angeles County, escaped from a work-furlough re-entry program on Aug. 26, 1983,” California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation officials said in a written statement.
Since that time, he has avoided detection using the name Carlos Herrera — an identity he purchased in Los Angeles, authorities said.
He was taken into custody at his home in the 5700 block of Rockvale Avenue in an unincorporated county area near Azusa, Azusa police said.
“He had resided in the San Gabriel (Valley) since 1993,” CDCR spokeswoman Brian Daly said, though it was not clear what cities he had been staying in prior to Azusa.
The arrest came after agents looked into the matter and developed new leads after checking modern databases, performing surveillance and consulting with other law enforcement agencies, according to the CDCR.
Agents moved to arrest Campo once they confirmed his DMV fingerprints matched those of the escaped inmate they were seeking.
Officials discovered that Campo had been arrested in 1993 for assault with a deadly weapon and sentenced to 36 months of probation, “but that CDCR was not notified of the arrest,” the CDCR statement said. “At the time there was no system to compare fingerprints electronically, and the process was very time consuming.”
Campo was sentenced to 16 months incarceration after being convicted of a Los Angeles County burglary in April of 1983, Daly said. He had served about four months when he escaped.
Campo was taken to the California Institution for Men in Chino for processing, CDCR officials said. He was expected to be charged with escape.
The Special Services Unit is a division of specialized investigators within the CDCR’s Office of Correctional Safety.
“They deal with complex investigations, including escapees, but also they deal with organized crime, prison gangs, local gangs, even dignitary protection,” Daly said.
Over the past 35 years, 98.7 percent of all inmates who have escaped from California adult institutions, conservation camps or community-based programs have been re-captured, officials said.
As of Friday, 207 remained at large, Daly said.
PHOTO: Over the past 35 years, 98.7 percent of all inmates who have escaped from California adult institutions, conservation camps or community-based programs have been re-captured, officials said. (Courtesy of the CDCR)
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