Convict Apprehended After Reentry Escape

Rudy Beltran, a 50-year-old state prisoner in a San Diego reentry program, was captured about seven hours after walking away from the facility. (cdcr.ca.gov) The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation said Beltran left the Male Community Reentry Program site in San Diego on April 21, 2026, after staff were alerted at about 1 p.m. that he had removed his GPS device. Agents arrested him without incident at about 8 p.m. the same day. (cdcr.ca.gov) The facility is in the 2700 block of Boston Avenue in Barrio Logan, according to local reports. Beltran was described as 6-foot-1 and about 205 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes, and was last seen in blue jeans and a blue short-sleeve shirt. (10news.com) California’s Male Community Reentry Program is a voluntary custody program that moves some incarcerated people from prison into supervised housing before release. The department says participants can get help with jobs, school, housing, family reunification, substance-use treatment, and medical or mental health care. (cdcr.ca.gov) Participants remain in state custody while in the program, and the department says they can leave only for approved activities such as work, treatment, or other scheduled services. A walk-away can trigger an emergency count, notifications to law enforcement, and a search by the Office of Correctional Safety. (cdcr.ca.gov) Beltran was received from Los Angeles County on June 15, 2021, according to the corrections department. CDCR said he was serving a nine-year sentence for first-degree burglary, assault with force likely to cause great bodily injury, and evading or attempting to evade a peace officer while driving recklessly. (cdcr.ca.gov) After his capture, CDCR said Beltran would be moved to a prison or jail and that the San Diego County District Attorney’s Office may consider an escape charge. The department also said his case will be reviewed by the Board of Parole Hearings. (cdcr.ca.gov) CDCR says 99 percent of people who have escaped or walked away from an adult institution, camp, in-state contract bed, or community rehabilitative placement since 1977 have been apprehended. In Beltran’s case, the search ended before the first night after he removed the tracker. (cbs8.com)