PORTLAND, Ore. — Authorities are searching for an inmate who walked away from a prison work crew in Salem on Monday afternoon.
The Oregon Department of Corrections said that 44-year-old T.J. Harvey Bennett escaped around 3 p.m., while working near the corner of 46th Place Southeast and Red Cherry Court Southeast.
Bennett was placed in custody in October 2023 for first-degree burglary in Columbia County. His earliest release date was set for March 2025, according to the Oregon Department of Corrections. He was being housed at the Santiam Correctional Institution, a minimum-security prison.
He is described as a white male, weighing 165 pounds and standing 5-foot, 8-inches tall with hazel eyes and brown hair. He was last scene wearing blue jeans, a blue shirt and an orange vest.
Oregon Department of Corrections asks that people do not approach Bennet.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Oregon State Police at 1-800-452-7888, the non-emergency number of their local police department, or the DOC Fugitive Apprehension Unit at 503-569-0734.
