Authorities are searching for a 20-year-old prisoner who slipped away from Washington State Department of Corrections (DOC) officers Tuesday evening while in a parking garage at Sea-Tac International Airport.
Officials identified the escapee as John Nino, who reportedly broke free from two DOC officers on the garage’s fourth floor before making his way toward the nearby light rail station. Airport officials said Nino crossed the pedestrian bridge on the station’s east side and continued toward International Boulevard.
The Port of Seattle Police Department (POSPD) joined the search, but by the end of the night, Nino had not been found. DOC described him as 6 feet 2 inches tall, 154 pounds, wearing a red coat and gray sweatpants at the time of the escape. He was last spotted crossing railroad tracks in the direction of Highway 99.
Investigators said Nino was under community supervision for a second-degree robbery conviction and was being transported back from New Mexico when he made his getaway.
This marks at least the third prisoner escape at Sea-Tac in recent months. On May 4, authorities say Sedrick Stevenson bolted from the terminal while an agent was escorting him to Bowling Green, Kentucky, where he faced multiple charges. Stevenson boarded a light rail train and vanished for more than a month before U.S. Marshals located him at a First Hill apartment complex.
In another case on July 15, court filings allege Gerson Enrique Castaneda ran from Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents during a transport at the airport. He was recaptured in the garage and is now facing federal charges.
