By Dale Denwalt
The Oklahoman, Oklahoma City
OKLAHOMA CITY —A jail escapee facing seven years in prison was recaptured Friday after two nights on the run.
Nicholas James Leach, 41, was found by officers with the Nicoma Park Police Department on Friday and returned to the Oklahoma County jail he escaped from. A spokesman with the Oklahoma County Detention Center said Leach was arrested without incident.
Leach fled the jail on Wednesday night, officials said, after taking a remote that opens a gate from a maintenance worker’s backpack. Leach was a trustee working in the maintenance department when he escaped.
Along with the remote, he also took the worker’s car keys out of the backpack, opened the gate with the remote, found the worker’s car and drove out of the jail parking lot, according to jail officials.
Leach has been in jail since May 29. He pleaded guilty this month to second-degree burglary, false declaration to a pawn shop and probation violations.
He now faces additional charges of escaping custody and stealing a vehicle, a detention center spokesman said.
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