Two inmates escaped a Northern California jail Sunday after they cut a hole in the ceiling of their building, according to the Monterey County Sheriff’s Office.
21-year-old Santos Samuel Fonseca and 20-year-old Jonathan Salazar were being held in the Monterey County Adult Detention Facility awaiting trial on unrelated murder charges.
The pair identified a blind spot in their building unit and cut through the sheet rock and metal screen to make a 22-inch hole in the bathroom ceiling, Capt. John Thornburg, a sheriff’s office spokesman, said.
The suspects climbed through the ceiling and came down through a hatch that leads to a back door, John added. It appears they kicked the back door open and left on foot.
Authorities said employees were not involved in helping the inmates escape.
A search for the suspects is in progress. Deputies said the two should be considered dangerous.