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Escaped Lyon Mountain inmate shot, captured
Escaped from Lyon Mountain Correctional, spent night in woods
LYON MOUNTAIN — A convict was shot and captured late Tuesday morning after he spent more than 12 hours on the run.
Authorities from several agencies spent Monday night combing the woods and roadways around Lyon Mountain Correctional Facility after Scott Adkins walked away from the prison and attempted to hide out in the surrounding wilderness.
Prison officials say the 23-year-old was reported missing around 10:30 p.m. when he failed to show up for a master head count.
When contacted about the escape, police launched an extensive search for the missing inmate and continued their efforts with aerial, canine and foot patrols Tuesday morning.
By 10:30 a.m., authorities blocked off a portion of Route 374 and keyed in on the heavily wooded area to the north, where a helicopter could be seen steadily circling the non-residential area.
According to State Police, off-duty correction officer Byron W. "Butch" Wing, had just passed through a checkpoint when he saw Adkins, who he recognized, enter the woods to the north of Chazy Lake Road.
After Wing notified authorities, both marked and unmarked vehicles lined the state highway as police converged on the woods and established a tight perimeter.
While searching the wooded area, Sgt. Fred R. Atkinson, station commander at the Plattsburgh barracks, spotted Adkins and told him to stop. Police say Adkins refused repeated orders to stop and show his hands.
As he tried to flee farther into the woods, Atkinson shot him in the arm with a 12-gauge shotgun.
Bureau of Criminal Investigation Capt. Robert LaFountain said Adkins suffered "very minor wounds" during the shooting and was taken to CVPH Medical Center in Plattsburgh, where he was treated for the arm wound. He was later released to the Department of Corrections.
As Adkins was escorted to the hospital under tight security, several curious drivers paused to watch the drama unfold.
Word of the escape had left residents on edge and those near the capture expressed gratitude that Adkins was no longer on the loose.
Though authorities are still looking into how and when he left the facility, Department of Correctional Services spokesperson Linda Foglia said it appears as though Adkins simply walked away from the minimum-security facility, which does not have a secure perimeter.
He made it on foot for about three miles before he was caught.
LaFountain credited Wing with helping authorities foil Adkins' escape attempt.
Wing later told the Press-Republican he was enjoying a day off from Clinton Correctional Facility when he stopped at one of the checkpoints and was shown a picture of the escaped convict.
Minutes later, he spotted the man.
I got around the corner, and he was trying to sneak across the road.
"Once I saw the green (prisoner) pants, I knew it was him," Wing said from his home Tuesday afternoon.
After watching Adkins jump across the guardrail, Wing said he contacted the nearest troopers and directed them toward the sighting.
It wasn't long before Adkins was taken into custody.
Adkins had been housed at Lyon Mountain since February following his late 2008 conviction for attempted burglary in Suffolk County.
Foglia said he now faces up to seven more years in prison for criminal escape and will also face internal punishments, such as increased daily confinement.
He will no longer be housed at the rural facility and will be transferred to an undisclosed maximum-security prison to serve out the remainder of his four-year sentence, along with any additional time he may receive for the escape.
He was originally up for parole in 2011.
State Police spent most of the afternoon processing and documenting the area where Adkins was taken into custody.
LaFountain said no one else was injured during Adkins' capture.
It was initially believed that the inmate was unarmed during his failed escape attempt.
Officials from the Department of Correctional Services, Inspector General's Office, Clinton County Sheriff's and Department of Environmental Conservation assisted in the search.
A State Police special-operations-response team was also called in to aid the multi-agency efforts.
Police anticipate Adkins will be charged with first-degree escape.
E-mail Andrea VanValkenburg at: avanvalkenburg@pressrepublican.com
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