Convicted murderer still at large after breaking out of Alabama prison

CULLMAN, Ala. — A man convicted of killing his parents remains at large after breaking out of an Alabama jail with three other inmates on Thursday night, authorities said.

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Leo Santiago Chavez, 20, kicked his way out of the Cullman County Dentention Center, AL.com reported.

Chavez, Robert Alan Peak, Tyler Dooley and Justin Long escaped from the jail at about 6:33 p.m. Thursday, the website reported. By Friday morning, only Chavez remained at large.

Chavez was convicted in March 2020 on three counts of capital murder and two counts of abuse of a corpse, WBRC reported.

He was sentenced in January 2021 to two consecutive life sentences, plus 10 years, for the December 2017 murder of his mother, Adalberta Chavez Ruiz, and his father, Ricardo Santiago Gonzales, AL.com reported.

Chavez was 17 at the time of his parents’ murders, according to The Associated Press. Jose Gamaliel Villanueva, 20, and Jose Guevara-Valadez, 23, and a juvenile were also charged in connection with the case.

Cullman County Sheriff Matt Gentry said on Friday that deputies have been combing the area to find Chavez.

“Anytime you have somebody out with his convictions, it’s very concerning,’' Gentry told AL.com. “And we’re not going to stop until we catch him.”

Chavez was being held in the Cullman County Detention Center while awaiting transfer to the Alabama Department of Corrections to begin his prison term, according to AL.com. His transfer had been delayed due to COVID-19 restrictions.

“That is a struggle that we have faced at the sheriff’s office, and I think every sheriff around the state of Alabama, since the COVID outbreak has happened,’' Gentry told the website. “We are not able to get the amount of inmates to DOC that we need to.”

Cox Media Group