Convicted Child Sex Offender Who Escaped St. Louis Hospital Is Captured: Police

A man in handcuffs in a file photo. Philippe Huguen/AFP/Getty Images

The “dangerous” convicted child sex offender who escaped from custody while receiving treatment at a hospital in St. Louis, Missouri, has been recaptured without incident, police said on Sept. 22.

The prisoner was identified as Tommy Wayne Boyd, 45, who is serving a 30-year sentence in the Missouri Department of Corrections for statutory sodomy, according to the St. Louis County Police Department.

The department said its Special Response Unit was following up on leads when they located Mr. Boyd and took him into custody. Mr. Boyd was captured in the 7300 hundred block of Watson Road.

“This arrest was the culmination of local, state, and federal law enforcement collaborating to keep our public safe,” the department stated on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.

The department also expressed gratitude to the community for providing “numerous tips to assist in locating this dangerous felon.”

“Our residents are safer tonight with Boyd in custody,” the department said. Authorities did not clarify on how Mr. Boyd managed to escape.

Mr. Boyd committed first-degree statutory sodomy in 1996 when he was 18 years old. The victim was an 11-year-old boy, and the offense was committed in Springfield, Missouri, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s sex offender registry.

He was transported to Mercy Hospital South on Sept. 20 for medical treatment. Mr. Boyd was last seen by hospital staff at around 3:54 a.m. (local time) on Sept. 21, according to the police.

Surveillance footage captured him leaving the hospital premises on foot, traveling in an unknown direction. Police classified Mr. Boyd as dangerous and have urged residents to secure their homes and garages.

This happened just a week after the recapture of convicted murderer Danelo Souza Cavalcante, 34, who escaped from a Pennsylvania jail on Aug. 31 by “crab-walking” up between two walls that were topped with razor wire, then jumping from the roof.

Mr. Cavalcante was captured on Sept. 13 by a team of tactical officers, bringing an end to an intensive search that terrified residents as the fugitive broke into homes for food, changed his appearance and stole a van and rifle during two weeks on the run.

The jail tower guard on duty when the inmate escaped was fired. The escape went undetected for more than an hour until guards took a headcount.

Mr. Cavalcante was convicted of killing his ex-girlfriend, Deborah Brandao, in front of her children in 2021. Prosecutors say he wanted to stop her from telling police he was wanted in the Brazil killing. He was arrested in Virginia, and authorities say they believe he was trying to return to Brazil.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.