Inmate believed escaped captured, never left prison grounds

WESTVILLE, Ind. (AP) - Authorities say an inmate they believed had escaped from a northern Indiana prison has been captured and he never left the prison grounds.

Westville Correctional Facility Superintendent Mark Sevier says as 35-year-old Orville Morris of Marengo was found Saturday hiding on a ledge within the heating and air-conditioning ductwork of the prison's pallet shop.

Prison officials say Morris had crawled into some of the mechanical systems in that building's ceiling. He was unaccounted for during Friday morning's inmate check.

Morris was serving prison sentences for burglary convictions and had been scheduled for release in January 2019 from the prison about 25 miles east of Gary.

He now faces internal prison charges for his attempted escape. LaPorte County prosecutors will determine whether he also faces felony criminal charges.