x
Breaking News
More () »

How convict escaped from Fort Madison prison

Prison officials said he did things that were supposed to be impossible as he made his way out of the Iowa State Penitentiary in Fort Madison.

Iowa Governor Terry Branstad called the escape of an inmate from the state's maximum security prison "stupid" but "ingenious," and he called for a total review of security at the facility.

Justin Kestner, 25, pulled off an escape from a medical unit at the Iowa State Penitentiary in Fort Madison sometime on Sunday morning, July 5, 2015.

According to prison officials, Kestner was able to climb up a pipe chase in a shower, and then through a vent to the roof. He used a rope made of torn bed sheets to climb from the roof to an unfenced area of the prison.

"From what I've heard and what he did, is, he had like 67 feet of bed sheets that he used as kind of a rope, which is an unbelievable amount; and then he also crawled through a very narrow area that's supposed to be too small for a person to crawl through," Gov. Branstad said.

It's believed Kestner used a  car stolen from nearby  Wever, Iowa area to drive about 100 miles to Henry County, Illinois where he was caught by a state trooper in a cornfield.

Before his escape, Kestner was serving ten years for theft.

The last escape from the prison was in 2005.

 

Before You Leave, Check This Out