Inmate escapes from Midlands jail overnight, sheriff’s office says
An inmate escaped a Midlands jail Saturday, the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office said.
Lance Michael Alberti escaped from the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office Detention Center Saturday night, but it wasn’t clear he was missing until Sunday morning, the sheriff’s office said in a news release.
The search to track Alberti included drones and police dogs, according to the release. Deputies confirmed Alberti made it through a wooded area behind the jail. While tracking dogs found discarded items from Alberti, they were unable to locate him, the sheriff’s office said.
The search was put on hold after the sheriff’s office said it believed Alberti left the area.
Information about how Alberti escaped the jail and left the area was not available. But the sheriff said he didn’t think the man originally arrested on shoplifting charges was a threat to the community.
“I commend my detention officers and deputies’ efforts this morning in quickly piecing together the actions that Alberti took and securing the area,” Sheriff Anthony Dennis said in the release. “In verifying certain facts, we fully believed the residents in the immediate area were not in any danger. We are coordinating with other agencies and believe that he will be back in custody soon.”
Alberti was originally brought into the jail under a false name late Friday night on the shoplifting offense, the sheriff’s office said. During the booking process, his true identity was verified, and detention officers then confirmed an outstanding warrant by the South Carolina Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services and applied a hold, according to the release.
Alberti was also charged with providing false identity and on Saturday his bond was denied pending the extradition process for his outstanding warrant, the sheriff’s office said.
Information about where Alberti was being extradited to, and the charges he was facing, was not available.
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This story was originally published October 9, 2022 at 3:54 PM.
