Law enforcement searching after prisoner escaped from recreation yard in Lumberton

ROBESON COUNTY, NC (WWAY) — Law enforcement officers are searching for a prisoner who escaped this afternoon.

The North Carolina Department of Public Safety says Joshua P. Ostwalt (#1017527) escaped this afternoon around 3 pm from the recreation yard at the Robeson Confinement in Response to Violation Center in Lumberton.

Ostwalt, 32, is six-foot-three and weighs 170 pounds. He has tattoos on both his left and right arms and hands, as well as prominent tattoos on his neck. He has also used the last name spelled “Ostowalt.”

He was serving a two-and-a-half-year sentence for felony breaking and entering and a parole violation. He was scheduled to be released on July 27, 2023.

An escape warrant is being prepared. He also faces unrelated pending charges of breaking and entering.

The CRV centers house and provides intensive behavior modification programs for those who have committed technical violations of probation. CRV centers incarcerate violators for 90-day periods in response to violations of probation, parole, or post-release supervision as provided in the Justice Reinvestment Act of 2011.

If you see Ostwalt, please call 911 or the Robeson CRV at 910-618-5535.