Two of four jail escapees arraigned

CNJ staff photo: Tony Bullocks Javier Zapata, one of the Curry County Detention Center escapees, is arraigned Thursday in district court. Zapata is facing more than four years imprisonment for charges stemming from the escape attempt.

Two of four captured Clovis escapees were arraigned Thursday in district court.

Javier Zapata, 19, and Raynaldo Jeremy Enriquez, 19, are each facing more than four years imprisonment for their Aug. 24 escape from the Curry County Adult Detention Center, District Attorney Matt Chandler told judge Robert Orlik at the afternoon hearing.

They are charged with escape from jail, conspiracy to escape from jail and criminal damage to property over $1,000.

Zapata and Enriquez were among a group of eight to escape from the jail by climbing plumbing pipes and cutting a hole in the roof.

Victor Sotelo, 26, and Victor Apodaca, 39, two other captured inmates, were not at the hearing and are awaiting arraignment.

Four escapees, including a convicted and suspected murderer, remain at large.

Orlik agreed to set Zapata’s bond at $100,000 cash only after Chandler told him Zapata escaped from a Texas jail in 2007 and is facing domestic violence charges involving use of a firearm.

Enriquez’ bond was set at $125,000 cash only, after Chandler told the court he is charged in a series of violent home invasions that occurred this summer.

Under a cash only bond, defendants must be able to present the true cash value of the bond amount, as opposed to other bond options allowing percentages to be posted.

Also arraigned were three inmates accused of assisting in the escape.

Police said Lawrence Kolek, 26, Kevyn Crane, 27, and Manuel Lopez, 32, blocked the escapees from view as they slipped through a plumbing chase door.

Because one of the escapees was convicted murderer Edward Salas, who was a department of corrections prisoner awaiting transfer to the jail, they face a possible nine years imprisonment, Chandler told the court.

Lopez and Kolek’s bonds were set at $25,000 cash only while Crane’s was set at $15,000 cash only.

Pre-trial hearings were scheduled in November for the defendants.