Evil paedophile serving life for abusing child escapes from prison sparking major manhunt

Police have not revealed how convicted pedophile Robert Yancy Jr managed to escape from the Texas jail but he drove away from the scene with his mum who was later arrested, authorities say

A massive manhunt has been launched after a convicted pedophile serving a life sentence for sexually abusing children managed to escape from jail.

Robert Yancy Jr., 39, was convicted in 2022 by a Victoria County jury of sexually abusing a 10-year-old girl and sentenced to life without parole in June this year.

But at around 3.30pm on Sunday he managed to escape from the Clemens Unit in Brazoria, Texas. He drove away in a white Nissan Versa along with his mum, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice said in a statement.

It is unclear how he managed to escape but was last seen wearing a black beanie and a black sweatshirt. His mum, Lenor Priestle, was later arrested over charges related to her son's escape. It is believed that she and her son fled the county before her arrest.

Read more: Suspected serial killer lured victims into woods to hunt for buried treasure

The 39-year-old pedophile's mum was driving the white Nissan Versa with the licence plate of DNR9145 that Yancy Jr made his escape in. But at the time of her arrest, Priestle was alone in the car, authorities revealed.

The public have been warned not to approach Yancy Jr if they spot him but immediately call the police. Yancy Jr abused his victim over a three-year period beginning when the child was just seven years old.

He was locked up after both the victim and her brother testified during a trial, with jurors reaching a verdict after just 23 minutes of deliberations.

Anyone with information on his whereabouts, you can leave a tip with the Office of Inspector General at 1-800-832-8477.

For all the latest news, politics, sports, and showbiz from the USA, go to The Mirror US

In September a massive manhunt was launched after a murderer escaped from jail by crab walking up the walls. He was later caught, bitten by a police dog, and arrested after a two-week manhunt.

Killer Danelo Cavalcante, who escaped his Pennsylvania jail on August 31, was hiding in the woods when a huge team made up of multiple law enforcement agencies was able to pounce on him.

At a press conference on Wednesday morning, Lieutenant Colonel Bivens explained that Cavalcante was finally caught after 12 days using thermal heat technology to track the criminal as he moved through the forest. He was armed with a stolen rifle.

When law enforcement converged, Cavalcante tried to flee once again, crawling on his belly through the brush, before eventually being bitten and caught by a police dog and taken into custody.

“This is a message from Pennsylvania State Police. The search for Danelo Cavalcante is over. The subject is now in custody,” a reverse 911 call sent to area residents said.

Lieutenant Colonel Bivens told the full story of the capture at the press conference: "As you know, we have been working most recently in a perimeter established in northern Chester county. Last night, shortly after midnight, a series of events began to unfold. We had a burglar alarm within the perimeter. Our people investigated that but were unable to find Cavalcante."