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Saatio sentenced to 15 years in prison

SANTA ROSA, Fla. – John Saatio was sentenced to 15 years in prison in Florida Tuesday morning for his most recent escape from custody in August.

Saatio, who escaped from the Houghton County Jail in June 2015, was sentenced to 15 years in prison in Santa Rosa County for second-degree escape and five years in prison for third-degree unlawful possession of a concealed handcuff key.

Saatio’s most recent arrest came in July in Florida, where he was recaptured after escaping from a private transportation van that was bringing him back to Houghton County. After Saatio’s arrest, officers found two makeshift handcuff keys in one of his socks. Saatio said he had used the locks to pick his handcuffs and belly chain, according to his arrest report.

Saatio escaped Houghton County in June 2015 while being escorted back to the county jail after a court hearing. He was apprehended in Costa Rica in June before escaping an immigration detention center, where he was put pending an ultimately unsuccessful request for asylum. He was extradited to the U.S. and held in Texas prior to his transport.

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