Runaway Fugitive

Murderer Caught After Escaping Prison

Runaway+John+Modie%2C+58%2C+was+captured+at+a+Shell+gas+station

Runaway John Modie, 58, was captured at a Shell gas station

Autumn Jenkins, Staff Writer

John Modie, a 58-year-old man, was arrested for the second time on Monday, March 28, according to CNSNews. Modie is serving a 15-year to life sentence on the charges of murder, robbery, and escape since the initial sentencing in December 2003.

Modie had been caught in 2002 after a woman, Ucianna Ortiz, was found dead on I-90 from blunt-force trauma to the head. According to NYDailyNews, authorities suspected that he murdered her in his Cleveland home, then ditched her body behind an abandoned building. Modie, after attempting to flee Cuyahoga County Jail following his original arrest, pleaded guilty to all charges and was integrated into the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction. Thirteen years following his incarceration, Modie fled prison for the second time in his life, only to be reported missing after the Sunday night prison check.

Immediately following the escape, authorities and local businesses such as the Hocking College were told to close their doors and report any suspicious behavior within the area. Due to the 24-hour search performed by a joint law enforcement task force Modie was captured in Nelsonville at 10:50 p.m. by a gas station only one day after his escape, according to ABCNews.

Officials are withholding information surrounding Modie’s escape and capture. More details and any changes in his sentencing will be released soon, as it has been over two weeks since his containment.