Jail escapee recaptured, faces additional charges

The Santa Cruz man who allegedly walked out of Santa Cruz County Main Jail Monday night was recaptured Tuesday and faces additional charges for the escape, the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office reported.

Craig Souza, 34, reportedly told a television reporter that he escaped to see his girlfriend.

According to Sheriff’s Deputy April Skalland, detectives followed up on leads and contacted Souza by phone, and he agreed to turn himself in. He was arrested without incident.

Souza, who has a history of non-violent drug offenses and theft, was arrested at 5:14 p.m. Monday by Santa Cruz Police for providing a false name to a police officer and a probation violation, the Sheriff’s Office said.

He was taken to the Main Jail and placed in the booking area. Just after 7 p.m., Souza reportedly walked to a staff door and was released by a correctional officer who was monitoring a video surveillance system.

Corrections staff noticed Souza was missing at 7:10 p.m. and locked down the jail and alerted Santa Cruz law enforcement personnel to be on the lookout for Souza.

The last escape from the Santa Cruz County Main Jail happened in 2003, when two inmates escaped out of the laundry room. Every year the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office books more than 12,000 inmates.



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