One inmate still on the loose after escaping Bent County Jail with three others

BENT COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) - The Bent County Sheriff's Office is still searching for an inmate after he escaped from the Bent County Jail with three other inmates.

According to Bent County Sheriff Jake Six, the four inmates escaped sometime between Sunday evening and Monday morning. The sheriff was notified of the escape at 11:30 a.m. Tuesday morning.

Sheriff Six told KRDO the issue happened due to head counts not being done properly. The inmates reportedly bunched up the sheets to make it look like they were still in the bed and jail staff didn't check closely enough. Those inmates were staying in a cell that had been converted from a kitchen.

According to Six, the inmates broke through the sheetrock ceiling, crawled through the attic, and went out the back of the jail. At this time, it's unclear whether or not the four had outside help.

Two of the inmates were found after they overdosed in a Las Animas hotel. One of the inmates was able to call 911. They're both in stable condition.

The third inmate, identified as Benjamin Jeremy Valdez, was found dead in Pueblo on Monday following a possible drug overdose.

Investigators are still searching for Mark Fox. He's described as bald, 6'3, and weighing around 210 pounds.

The Bent County Sheriff's Office, Colorado State Patrol, and the Otero County Sheriff's Office are searching for Fox.

Notifications have already been sent out to the Las Animas community and to surrounding law enforcement agencies about his escape. Residents are told to keep their doors and cars locked.

Anyone who sees something suspicious or Fox is asked to not approach him, instead call local law enforcement right away.

Fox is considered dangerous, he was sentenced to 64 years in prison.

An investigation is ongoing into what went wrong and why this happened.