Federal Inmate Pleads Guilty to Escape

US Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that David Paul Wood, age 29, appeared before U.S. District Judge Lawrence L. Piersol on September 20, 2012, and pled guilty to one count of an indictment that charged him with escape. The maximum penalty upon conviction is 5 years in prison and/or a $250,000 fine.

In April 2012, Wood walked away from the Yankton Federal Prison Camp and got into a car that was waiting for him. Prison staff conducting surveillance followed the vehicle, which stopped in a nearby parking lot. The vehicle soon returned to the prison camp, at which point Wood exited the vehicle and ran toward a prison camp housing unit. Prison staff apprehended Wood before he entered the housing unit.

The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Bureau of Prisons. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant US Attorney Ann M. Hendrickson.

A presentence investigation was ordered, and a sentencing date was set for December 5, 2012. The defendant was returned to the prison camp pending sentencing.