Two inmates caught trying to escape jail

BUTTE (AP) — Two registered sex offenders who are awaiting sentencing for sex crimes involving children made a failed attempt to escape the Anaconda jail on Halloween, police said.

Joshua James Kline, 29, and Frank Joseph Vieira, 54, now face charges of attempted escape and criminal mischief, The Montana Standard reported.

Prosecutors allege Kline and Vieira ripped a metal plate from a wall in the shower and crawled into a small hole. They made their way to a crawlspace that houses plumbing above one of the cellblocks, Police Chief Tim Barkell said.

There was no place the men could go, Barkell said, but they refused to come out after jailers found them. The men said they were innocent.

Officers used pepper spray on the men, who threatened suicide. They finally surrendered after they were threatened with a stun gun.

Kline has been jailed for about 150 days and faces sentencing for a sexual assault charge. Viera has been jailed for over 400 days and is awaiting sentence on a conviction for sexual assault of children.