Inmates who escaped CBCF, alleged acomplice in custody

Two inmates who escaped the Lorain/Medina Community Based Correctional Facility on Wednesday night were back in custody Friday morning, along with the girlfriend of one of the men, who the Lorain County Sheriff's Office said helped them escape. Steven Carpenter, Johhny Brooks Jr. and Jamie Veltri were arrested Friday morning — Carpenter by Wadsworth police and Brooks and Veltri by the Northern Ohio Violent Fugitive Task Force's Akron Division in Springfield Township, south of Akron. Carpenter and Brooks, both Wadsworth residents who were being held in the CBCF on felony charges, will be charged with escape and vandalism, according to the Lorain County Sheriff's Office. Veltri, who officials believe is Carpenter's girlfriend, will be charged with two counts of complicity to escape, both felonies, the sheriff's office said in a news release. The two men allegedly used part of a bunk bed to break through bars and a window at the CBCF just before 6:30 p.m. Wednesday. The CBCF is a facility on Murray Ridge Road next to the Lorain County Jail that houses felony inmates from both Lorain and Medina counties who are undergoing court-ordered addiction treatment and behavioral therapy to prevent them from re-offending. CBCF staff discovered the escape attempt but could not prevent the men from climbing out the window and running away, Executive Director Mike Willets said Thursday. In a news release, Wadsworth police said Carpenter, 37, was seen walking on Main Street near Walnut Street in Wadsworth just before 10 a.m. Friday. Officers responded, and thanks to tips from local residents found Carpenter on East Bergey Street, where he was taken into custody without incident. He was handed over to the Lorain County Sheriff's Office, according to Wadsworth police.Carpenter was being held without bond in the Lorain County Jail pending arraignment in Elyria Municipal Court on Monday, according to the sheriff's office. "The Wadsworth Police Department is appreciative of the alert citizen who immediately contacted our dispatch center to report Carpenter's location and for the actions of our patrol officers who quickly responded to the area, which prevented Carpenter the opportunity to further his escape," Wadsworth police said in the news release. Separately, the Northern Ohio Violent Fugitive Task Force's Cleveland division — which includes members of the sheriff's office's Warrant Unit — were told by their Akron-based counterparts that Brooks, 28, and Veltri, 32, were at or near the Red Roof Inn off Interstate 77 in Springfield Township in Summit County, just south of Akron. Both also were arrested, held at the Springfield Township Police Department, then transported to the Lorain County Jail, according to the sheriff's office and jail records. Brooks and Veltri also are scheduled to be arraigned in Elyria Municipal Court on Monday morning, the sheriff's office said. Carpenter's criminal history includes felony drug possession drug charges and a theft conviction in Medina County. He also pleaded guilty to an escape charge in Lorain County Common Pleas Court in November 2016 and was sentenced to six months in prison by Judge Mark Betleski. Earlier this month, Medina County Common Pleas Judge Joyce Kimbler ordered Brooks to complete the CBCF program following a felony conviction for drug possession. Brooks' multiple felony convictions for drug trafficking, drug possession, weapons and assault offenses all are in Medina County, according to court records there. Veltri does not appear to have a criminal record in either Medina County or Lorain County, according to a search of court records in both places. It was the third escape from the Lorain/Medina CBCF since June 2021. Three male inmates who escaped that month, plus a woman who drove a getaway car that picked up two of them, were arrested, jailed and charged with new crimes. Contact Dave O'Brien at (440) 329-7129 or dobrien@chroniclet.com. Follow him on Twitter @DaveOBrienCT.