Listen to this article
Approximately 2 minutes
The audio version of this article was created using artificial intelligence technology. Pronunciation errors may occur. We work with our partners to continually analyze and improve results.
The search is underway for a convicted murderer whom police describe as “dangerous” and who is believed to have escaped from a Vancouver Island prison.
In a press release, Correctional Service Canada (CSC) said staff discovered 69-year-old Ernest Egon Jensen missing from the William Head Institution during a head count at noon Sunday.
William Head is a minimum security federal prison in Metchosin, British Columbia, approximately 27 kilometers southwest of Victoria.
Jensen has been serving a life sentence for second-degree murder since 1991 and also served time for breaking and entering and trespassing.
West Bank RCMP say they have launched “intensive patrols” in the search for Jensen, who is wanted on a warrant for being unlawfully at large.
“You will see a heavy police presence in the area near the William Head facility as officers continue to search outside the facility and William Head officers continue a comprehensive search of their facility,” RCMP said in a news release.
“The West Bank RCMP Police Dog Service also attended the scene and the RCMP Aviation Service was also called in to conduct aerial patrols.”
Jensen is described as five feet eight inches tall, bald and heavyset.
Police say anyone who sees Jensen is asked not to approach him and to call 911 immediately.
Anyone with information that could assist in the search is asked to contact Westshore RCMP at 250-474-2264.
WATCH | Family speaks out after escaped killer is sentenced:
Martin Payne’s sister and daughter speak after Payne’s killer is sentenced
Martin Payne’s sister, Colleen Payne (left), and his daughter Jessica Payne (right) spoke in British Columbia Supreme Court after the second of Martin’s killers was sentenced to life in prison without parole for 25 years.
This is not the first time in recent years that a prisoner has escaped from William Head.
In July 2019, James Lee Bush and Zachary Armitage left the site by walking around the fence at low tide.
The duo killed Martin Payne, a 60-year-old man who lived about eight kilometers from the facility.
The couple was arrested two days after the escape and later found guilty of first-degree murder in Payne’s killing.