On May 1, 2023, the Piedmont Regional Jail in Farmville, Virginia, reported that two inmates had escaped from their facility. The Prince Edward County Sheriff’s Office immediately began an investigation into the matter. Jail staff reported that Alder Marin-Sotelo and Bruce Callahan, both federal detainees, had escaped from the facility over the weekend.
Marin-Sotelo was being held on federal gun charges and was also a person of interest in the murder of a Wake County, North Carolina Deputy Sheriff in 2022. Callahan, on the other hand, was being held on federal narcotics charges.
The Piedmont Regional Jail is a regional jail authority that operates independently from surrounding law enforcement agencies. The jail is responsible for housing offenders from six surrounding jurisdictions as well as federal law enforcement.
Jail staff provided investigators with video surveillance indicating that Marin-Sotelo was the first to escape, going over the perimeter fence on April 30, 2023, at approximately 1:18 AM. Callahan escaped at 11:14 PM on the same day.
Upon discovering that the two escaped inmates were federal detainees with no affiliations to the Prince Edward County area or local charges, the investigation was turned over to the FBI and the US Marshals Service.
Both escaped inmates remain at large. The public is advised to contact law enforcement immediately if they have any information regarding the whereabouts of Marin-Sotelo and Callahan.
The Prince Edward County Sheriff’s Office, the FBI, and the US Marshals Service are working to ensure that the two escaped inmates are brought back into custody.