MORGANTOWN, Pa. (KYW Newsradio) — Police have captured all nine of the teenagers who had escaped from a Berks County juvenile detention facility Sunday night.
Pennsylvania State Police say around 8 p.m. Sunday, there was a disturbance at Abraxas Academy in Morgantown. Abraxas specializes in detention and residential treatment for young male offenders.
A group of juveniles overpowered a couple of staff members and stole a set of keys, say police. The disturbance was brought under control, but nine detainees escaped.
About nine hours later, state police say they took four of the nine escaped juveniles into custody at a home on Oak Grove Road in Morgantown.
With rain overnight, conditions outside the detention center were not friendly, and the four teens essentially gave up on the idea of running away when they became too cold. Police say they banged on a resident’s door around 5:45 a.m., and the homeowner called 911.
The search continued for the remaining five until about an hour later, when police got a report of a stolen truck and trailer not too far down Oak Grove Road as well. Police drove over there as soon as they could. After a short pursuit, they took four juveniles from the truck into custody.
A fifth teen ran off but was captured shortly afterward.
This comes just days after the two-week manhunt for Danilo Cavalcante ended with his capture in Chester County. From escape to recapture, the teens were missing from Abraxas for less than 12 hours.
The boys have been charged with offenses including robbery, theft, gun charges. Some of them had been relocated to Abraxas because of bad behavior at other facilities.
