TEMPE - A female inmate escaped police custody at a Tempe hospital before being caught about two hours later.
Police say Yvette Decorse, 20, reportedly slipped out of her handcuffs and her hospital gown and fled while at St. Luke’s Hospital.
Lt. Scott Smith, with the Tempe Police Department, tells 3TV, “At approximately 7:15 p.m. one of our officers called out that he had a prisoner that was fleeing from the Tempe St. Luke’s Hospital in the area of Mill and Apache.
Decorse was initially booked into the Tempe City Jail on a misdemeanor charge at about 1:30 p.m. At about 6:30 p.m. she started complaining of some medical issues. She was subsequently transported to the hospital for a medical evaluation. While she was being treated she actually fled from the hospital. She fled through the front door and was able to actually slip off her cuffs and flee into the neighborhood.”
Officers locked down the area and engaged in a two-team K9 search. Decorse was seen fleeing the hospital in a black t-shirt and underwear.
Additional investigation reveals Decorse unlawfully entered a house next to the hospital and put on a pair of pants she found in the home. The homeowners reportedly arrived while Decorse was there and they had a conversation where she asked to use the phone.
Decorse made two phone calls, left the house and was picked up by a vehicle. The investigation led detectives to an apartment in the 1900 block of E. University Drive in Tempe.
Officers located Decorse in that apartment at about 9:30 p.m. along with two males identified as Jacob Wayne and Brian Clark. She now faces escape and residential burglary charges in addition to the original charges of providing false information to law enforcement and three outstanding warrants.
Wayne was arrested and faces charges of hindering prosecuting and providing false information to law enforcement. Clark was also arrested and faces a hindering prosecution charge.
