The Delaware Department of Correction announced Friday morning that Melissa Pote, one of two women that absconded from the Hazel D. Plant Women’s Treatment Facility in New Castle in September has been apprehended.
Officials said on Wednesday, November 24, 2021, Pote was apprehended by the Bensalem Township Police Department in Pennsylvania. Extradition to Delaware is pending.
On Thursday, September 9, 2021, four days after absconding, Nicole Thompson turned herself into Officers at the Baylor Women’s Correctional Intuition (BWCI). She was arraigned at JP 2 before being committed to BWCI on an Escape after Conviction Warrant in lieu of $10,000 cash bail.
The Delaware Department of Correction said Thompson and Melissa Pote walked away from the Hazel D. Plant Women’s Treatment Facility. Their whereabouts were unknown and unauthorized at that time. Preliminary information is both offenders were wearing gray sweatpants and sweatshirts. A Warrant for Escape after Conviction has been issued.
Community Corrections Centers are Level 4 facilities where the Department of Correction manages offenders who are transitioning back into the community. These centers are not secured like Level 5 prisons, as offenders are permitted to leave the facility to go to work, seek jobs, or attend approved treatment sessions.
