Deputies with the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office have reported that an inmate who escaped from a private transport vehicle Saturday night has been captured.
According to a SRSO news release, a call from a citizen at approximately 6:52 p.m. Sunday led authorities to John Wesley Saatio, 35, who escaped from custody just after 10:30 p.m. Saturday during a restroom stop at an Interstate 10 rest area near the eastbound 29-mile marker. The rest area was located just west of Highway 87.
SRSO deputies responded with a K-9 unit after a caller reported a suspicious person walking in a wooded area near Milton. Based on the description provided, authorities believed the suspicious person to be Saatio.
The K-9 team picked up a track on the southeast side of Antietam Road in Milton. The track led deputies through a large field and through several small creeks. Additional resources were called in from Santa Rosa Correctional Institute K-9, Okaloosa CI K-9, Century CI K-9 and Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
K-9 units continued to track Saatio south for approximately two miles where he was quickly approaching Yellow River. When the units caught up to Saaito nearly four hours later, he was apprehended without incident. Saatio was searched and two makeshift handcuff keys were located in his socks.
Saaito was transported to the Santa Rosa County Jail where he remains under close watch. Charges will include escape and possession of a handcuff key. Additional charges are pending, according to the SRSO release.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Escaped inmate captured near Milton