Three inmates were on the run on Thursday after escaping a minimum-security prison in western Wisconsin, causing an area school district to cancel classes, authorities said.
Jesse Fairley, 26, Andre Lee Vance, 21, and Kyle Peterson, 19, broke out of the St. Croix Correctional Center in New Richmond, about 45 miles east of Minneapolis, on Wednesday evening, the New Richmond Police Department said in a statement.
The New Richmond schools canceled classes on Thursday as a precaution for student safety, officials said in a statement.
It was unclear how the men escaped. The New Richmond Police Department was not immediately available for comment.
The inmates were last seen wearing long underwear tops and bottoms, gray shorts and running shoes, authorities said. The St. Croix County Sheriff's Office said the three may have taken a 2015 Hyundai Sonata that was reported stolen in the area.
Fairley is serving a sentence for burglary and Vance for burglary and operating a vehicle without the owner's consent. Peterson is serving time for forgery and drug possession.
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