Authorities piecing together escape timeline for captured Arizona fugitives

PHOENIX — Authorities are trying to piece together a timeline of how two escaped Arizona fugitives were able to evade custody for almost five days before their capture Thursday morning.

David Harmon and John Charpiot escaped capture for 110 hours after they broke out of a medium-security unit at the Florence state prison on Saturday night.

The duo was found less than 15 miles from the prison despite the elapsed time, leaving authorities searching for answers.

“There was a period of time we were concerned these subjects had stayed in the area and bedded down somewhere,” DPS Director Col. Heston Silbert said Thursday during a press conference. “That’s still a concern for us and it proved to be true.”

Silbert said DPS and other law enforcement agencies searched more than 800 homes in the area near the prison during a 16-hour period in hopes of finding Harmon and Charpiot.

The fugitives were only spotted once before their capture — on Saturday night when they were accused of trying to rob a Florence motel before running off when a clerk screamed for help.

Law enforcement is asking anyone who noticed a friend, family member or coworker who had unexpected or unexplained absences to contact them immediately.

“We have to figure out where they were these last few days,” Silbert said. “And right now, we’re going back and investigating that.”

Harmon, who was imprisoned in 2012, was serving a 100-year sentence for kidnapping and second-degree burglary. Charpiot’s 35-year sentence for child molestation and sexual abuse started in 2011.

Before escaping, Harmon and Charpiot were last accounted for at 4 p.m. Saturday. They were gone by the 8:30 p.m. count.

The men broke into a tool shed by knocking down an air conditioning unit and breaking through a wall, according to authorities. They were able to obtain a bolt cutter, wire snips and other items and used them to cut a fence.

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