The RCMP is searching for a mentally unstable prisoner who escaped from a hospital in North Battleford, Sask., Sunday night.
Police say Joseph Simon Peter Yaremko, 32, was in “secure custody,” but managed to escape from the Saskatchewan Hospital around 8:40 p.m. local time Sunday.
It’s believed that an accomplice picked up Yaremko in a vehicle outside the hospital and he may be heading for Prince Albert or Saskatoon, police say.
“Yaremko’s mental state is considered to be unstable and he has a history of violence,” the RCMP said in a news release issued Monday.
The RCMP’s statement a day after the escape prompted questions about why the public was not notified right away.
Saskatchewan Corrections Minister Christine Tell said there could have been a breakdown in communications because Yaremko escaped from a hospital, not a prison.
She said the hospital immediately told the RCMP about the escape, but no one told the ministry until Monday morning.
In 2008, the provincial government introduced a policy to alert the public right away if there is an escape from any corrections centre.
Yaremko is described as a five-foot-ten, 210-pound Caucasian with tattoos on his neck. He was last seen wearing a white T-shirt and black sweat pants.
Anyone with information about Yaremko’s whereabouts is asked to contact police.
With files from The Canadian Press
