Pa. Inmate Caught After Escaping Hospital in Waiting Car

The man was on the run for more than a month before being caught by police Tuesday.

An inmate was captured by police in Pennsylvania Feb. 21 after escaping from a hospital in January.

James W. Schwartz was taken into custody Tuesday night in South Whitehall Township by police investigating a credit card theft report, according to wfmz.com.

Schwartz was charged with escape, theft, receiving stolen property and false identification to police.

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Schwartz had been on work leave from the Lehigh County Community Corrections Center when he was found unresponsive while working at a Golden Coral on Jan. 2. Emergency personnel took the inmate to Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest in Salisbury Township.

Two days later, hospital security informed the county warden that Schwartz had escaped the hospital. According to hospital officials, Schwartz ran in and out of several units of the hospital before he left the building, hopped a fence and drove off in a waiting car.

This week, police responded to a report from a woman that a man she had given a ride to stole credit cards from her trunk.

When police found Schwartz he lied about his name and birthday. Police also found a bundle of credit cards in the grass next to him. The alleged victim identified Schwartz as the man that stole her credit cards.

Schwartz’s bail has been set at $60,000 and he has a pair of preliminary hearings tentatively scheduled for Feb. 28.

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