A Santa Barbara County Jail inmate on his way to court was able to escape Thursday, but was quickly taken back into custody, according to the Sheriff’s Department.
Cristian Otey, 41, was scheduled to appear at the criminal court building at 118 E Figueroa St. in downtown Santa Barbara when he made his escape attempt at about 8:25 a.m. , said sheriff’s spokeswoman Kelly Hoover.
The incident began as Otey was handcuffed and secured to a chain with other inmates, and they were being unloaded from a sheriff’s bus, Hoover said.
“Otey managed to escape out of his handcuffs by using a jail made instrument,” Hoover said. “He then slipped between a security door and the bus, jumped a fence and broke away from the grip of a custody deputy.”
While running away, Otey stripped off some of his jail-issued clothing, Hoover said.
Sheriff’s deputies and a University of California police officer gave chase, Hoover said, and apprehended Otey a few minutes later less than a block away, in the 300 block of West Carrillo Street.
Otey was heading to court after being arrested Monday by the Santa Barbara Police Department, Hoover said.
He is facing charges of battery against a non-cohabitating spouse/fiancée as well as an out-of-county warrant for probable/willful harm to a child, Hoover said.
He also is accused of assault with a deadly weapon other than firearm or force likely to produce great bodily injury; inflicting corporal injury on a spouse, an ex-spouse, a cohabitant, ex-cohabitant, or a child’s parent; and disorderly conduct in public while under the influence of alcohol.
After Thursday’s incident, Otey is facing new charges of escape from jail and resisting/obstructing a public officer, Hoover said.
— Noozhawk executive editor Tom Bolton can be reached at tbolton@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.