Jail escapee sentenced to 15 years

One of the Clovis jail escapees who’s been recaptured was sentenced to 15 years in prison Tuesday, District Attorney Matt Chandler said.

Victor Apodaca also faces four additional years in prison for Sunday’s escape attempt, Chandler said.

Apodaca, 39, pleaded guilty to charges of kidnapping, aggravated battery, assault to commit a violent felony and trafficking methamphetamine.

He was one of eight inmates who escaped the Curry County Adult Detention Center on Sunday night through a hole cut in the roof.

Apodaca was captured after a brief foot pursuit by Clovis police around 9:45 p.m. Sunday when Clovis police officers spotted him and another inmate running in the area near the jail. Both were wearing jail-issue orange jump suits.

The other inmate escaped.

Raynaldo Jeremy Enriquez, 19, and Javier Zapata, 19, were captured in separate Texas locations Monday night.

The other five inmates, including a convicted killer and another facing a murder charge, remain at large.

Court records show Apodaca was scheduled to begin a two-day jury trial today.

His charges stem from a February 2006 incident in which officers responded to a possible hostage situation. Police said Apodaca was holding a knife to a woman’s throat.

Officers subdued Apodaca and took him into custody, later discovering methamphetamine, packaging supplies and paraphernalia, the release said.

Apodaca will be required to serve a minimum of 85 percent of his sentence before he is eligible for parole.