A 55-year-old prison inmate who overpowered a guard and escaped in a Department of Corrections van Tuesday afternoon in Commerce City was arrested about seven hours later at a nearby bar, Adams County sheriff’s officials said.
The inmate, Jimmy W. Tanksley of Golden, was apprehended by DOC and Commerce City police about 8 p.m. at Big Ed’s Tavern, 6171 Olive St., without resisting, sheriff’s Sgt. Lou Dixon said.
An employee at the tavern declined to comment about the arrest.
The guard, described by DOC officials as a “prison industry supervisor,” was transporting Tanksley and three other inmates just after 1 p.m. to do road work along Interstate 270 when the incident occurred, Dixon said.
When the van came to a stop and the inmates began exiting the van, Tanksley allegedly attacked the guard, Dixon said.
The guard suffered minor injuries and was left behind with the other inmates as the escapee drove off in the van.
Authorities recovered the van and a cellphone left in it about an hour later and began scouring the area near there at East 64th Avenue and Poplar Street.
Tanksley was not thought to be armed, but police were cautious because he has a history of assaulting law enforcement officers, Dixon said.
Tanksley was convicted of assault in 2002 and has been serving a 12-year sentence at the DOC’s Camp George West facility in Jefferson County, officials said.
Staff writer Manny Gonzales can be reached at 303-820-1537 or mgonzales@denverpost.com.
