Convicted rapist sought after being released from prison ‘in error'

Officials with the U.S. Marshals Service and the Georgia Department of Corrections are trying to find a convicted felon after he was released from prison by accident, authorities said.

Tony Maycon Munoz-Mendez, 31, was convicted of rape and aggravated child molestation in Gwinnett County, according to Georgia Department of Corrections records. He had been in prison since April 2015 and was serving a life sentence, records show.

Munoz-Mendez was released “in error” from Rogers State Prison in Reidsville about noon Friday, department spokeswoman Lori Benoit said Monday in a news release.

It is not clear what led to his release.

“All resources are being utilized to ensure the rapid apprehension of Munoz-Mendez,” Benoit said. “The public is reminded to call 911 and do not approach.”

Munoz-Mendez is 5 feet, 9 inches tall and about 186 pounds with brown hair and eyes, according to authorities.

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Channel 2's Tony Thomas went to the Gwinnett County courthouse where he found records that showed Mendez was sentenced to three life sentences in March 2015 for the rape and child molestation of a girl under the age of 10 at a home in Lilburn.

In 2014, as Mendez waited for his trial, he wrote the judge assigned to his case, Kathryn Schrader, about his desire to get his case over with so he could be reunited with his children.

Mendez wrote, "I have no family here in the United States to help me out and I have to rely on myself on everything and it's hard. I know I'm innocent."

Anyone with information on his whereabouts is urged to contact GDC officials at 478-992-5111 or by email at gdc.ciu@gdc.ga.gov.

Cox Media Group