A Buffalo man who escaped from a halfway house following a federal prison term has pleaded guilty to the crime.
Rashaad Samuel, 30, of Buffalo, NY, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Richard J. Arcara to escape. The charge carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
According to Assistant U.S. Attorneys Meghan A. Tokash and Laura A. Higgins, in May 2018, Samuel was sentenced to serve 48 months in prison for his conviction on federal drug charges.
On June 5, 2020, Samuel, who had a projected release date of October 4, 2020, was furlough transferred from the Federal Correctional Center Pollock, in Pollock, Louisiana, to a community-based placement at the Volunteers of America, Residential Reentry Center (RRC) in Rochester, NY in order to complete his sentence.
On September 25, 2020, the defendant signed out of the RRC to go to his work site and was scheduled to return on the early following morning. He failed to return and remained in “escape status” until he was arrested in February 2021 by the United States Marshal Service.
The plea is the result of an investigation by the United States Marshals Service, under the direction of Marshal Charles Salina.
Sentencing is scheduled for September 17, 2021, before Judge Arcara.
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Key Facts
- State: New York
- Category: Violent Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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