Escaped Lorain/Medina CBCF inmates arrested, third person charged

Two inmates who escaped the Lorain/Medina Community Based Correctional Facility on Wednesday night were back in custody Friday morning. A third person, whom officials said is believed to be the girlfriend of one of the men, also was arrested and charged with helping them escape. In a news release, Wadsworth police said 37-year-old Steven Carpenter was seen walking on Main Street near Walnut Street in Wadsworth just before 10 a.m. Friday. Officers searched the neighborhood, and tips from local residents led them to East Bergey Street where he was taken into custody without incident and handed over to the Lorain County Sheriff's Office, according to Wadsworth police. Separately, the Northern Ohio Violent Fugitive Task Force's Cleveland division -- which includes members of the sheriff's office's Warrant Unit -- were told by their Akron-based counterparts that Johnny Brooks Jr. and Jamie Veltri were at or near the Red Roof Inn off Interstate 77 in Springfield Township, Summit County, just south of Akron. Both also were arrested. Veltri is believed to be Carpenter's girlfriend, and detectives believe she picked up the two men after their escape, the sheriff's office said in a news release. Brooks and Veltri were transported to the Springfield Township Police Department and were awaiting transport to the Lorain County Jail, the sheriff's office said. Carpenter and Brooks will be charged with escape and vandalism, which are felonies, and Veltri with complicity to escape, also a felony, the sheriff's office said. This is a developing story. Follow for more information.