A Craig man who pleaded guilty in Moffat County Court on Tuesday to escaping from Craig’s Correctional Alternative Place Services may face two years in prison in addition to the terms of his previous sentence.

Shane Stockton, 21, pleaded guilty in court via teleconference from the Moffat County Jail for escaping from CAPS on Feb. 3. Stockton waived a preliminary hearing for the escape charge but is slated to appear Tuesday in district court.

Stockton was sentenced recently to about 1 1/2 years in community corrections after pleading guilty to prior charges of second-degree aggravated motor vehicle theft and criminal trespassing. Police reportedly found Stockton a day after he was reported missing from the community corrections facility in a duplex on Seventh Street. He was treated at The Memorial Hospital for cuts to his body, police said. He was arrested and is in custody on a $50,000 bond.

In a separate case, police still have a warrant out for Michael Holton, 22, of Craig who reportedly also has escaped from CAPS. Holton apparently didn’t appear for work Feb. 25 at his job in Steamboat Springs.

Holton was sentenced to six years at CAPS last September and was serving a community corrections term for two felony charges of first-degree criminal trespassing and attempted possession of a controlled substance.

CAPS board member John Ponikvar said it was “unusual” that two CAPS residents had escaped over about a month’s time because that doesn’t happen often. Ponikvar said the majority of CAPS residents are admitted for drug and alcohol problems and aren’t considered a danger to the public.

CAPS offers residents an alternative to prison time and the program allows them to work in the community.

“We take good criminals,” Ponikvar said. “We try to screen well. If we feel they have a need to go to prison or they have problems with authority, we don’t want them here.”

CAPS has no guards but residents are expected to report back to the facility at night, he said.

Still, failure to follow community corrections guidelines comes with its share of consequences, Chief Deputy District Attorney Fitch said.

She said possible sentence for an escape from the correctional facility can be up to four years in prison.

“It’s very foolish to walk away,” she said. “It’s very serious to leave CAPS because it can add to your sentence.”

Amy Hatten can be reached at 824-7031 or ahatten@craigdailypress.com