Search ends for prison escapee at clinic

GALVESTON, TX

Houston police surrounded the Baylor Clinic building in the 6600 block Main Friday afternoon after someone reported spotting 27-year-old David Puckett, the inmate who escaped Wednesday evening from the Stiles Unit in Beaumont. Other employees said they thought they saw bloodied clothes and bandages stuffed into a laundry bin at the outpatient clinic on the 14th floor of the building.

However, none of the claims were founded by authorities on Friday. Baylor spokeswoman Dipali Pachett said during the search, no one was being allowed inside or outside the building.

Investigators believe they found the stolen pickup truck Puckett used to make his getaway Thursday night. A Texas Medical Center police unit spotted it at an Extended Stay hotel near the Medical Center but he was nowhere to be found.

Puckett was last seen Wednesday night trying to get medical attention at Saint Luke's Hospital, but he reportedly fled the hospital when he spotted a police officer. Investigators believe he cut himself on a razor fence during the escape.

Authorities also found bloody clothes believed to have been discarded by Puckett in Houston's Third Ward near Highway 288 and MacGregor, according to a TDCJ spokesperson.

Before the escape, Puckett was serving his fifth year of a 30-year sentence for aggravated assault of a public servant out of Lavaca County. Authorities don't believe he is with any family members because he is from Wisconsin.