A Lompoc federal prison inmate who has been missing from the facility since Saturday has been deemed a walkaway.
The inmate was discovered missing at approximately 10:20 p.m. Saturday, but authorities did not notify the community until Monday.
Daniel Diaz, 27, was described as a Hispanic man with black hair and brown eyes, standing 5 feet, 11 inches tall and weighing approximately 200 pounds.
Inmates from federal prison camps are considered walkaways because they don’t reside within razor-wire topped fencing, and typically perform chores on prison grounds, only reporting to designated areas at certain times.
The United States Marshals Service and local law enforcement agencies were notified, and an internal investigation was initiated, Bureau of Prisons officials said.
Diaz was sentenced in the Northern District of Iowa to 10 years for attempt and conspiracy to distribute 500 grams or more of a mixture or substance containing a detectable amount of methamphetamine, which contained 50 grams or more of actual (pure) methamphetamine.
Anyone with information about this individual should contact the Marshals Service at 213.894,2485.
The Satellite Prison Camp is a minimum-security facility that currently houses 506 male offenders.
The Lompoc Federal Correctional Complex also is made up of the Federal Correction Institution with 1,329 low-security inmates plus the U.S. Penitentiary with 1,098 medium-security inmates.
— Noozhawk North County editor Janene Scully can be reached at jscully@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.