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Escaped prisoner's clothes found on Florence riverbank, but his whereabouts unknown

Posted at 10:06 AM, May 30, 2018
and last updated 2018-05-30 12:06:51-04

FLORENCE, Colo. – The prisoner who escaped from a work detail near Canon City early Tuesday remains at large, though law enforcement officers said Wednesday morning they had discovered his clothes on a riverbank in Florence.

Michael Onorato, 37, was wearing the clothes discovered on the riverbank when he escaped from a work detail at a dairy. He was discovered missing at a 3 a.m. Tuesday head count at the Four Mile Correctional Center.

The Colorado Department of Corrections says it has a search team looking for Onorato, as are local law enforcement agencies. But it said that his current whereabouts are unknown.

Onorato is currently serving a multi-year sentence on vehicle theft, drug abuse and robbery convictions, among others.

Anyone who sees Onorato or has knowledge regarding his whereabouts is asked to call the DOC’s Fugitive Tips line at 866-873-6305, the prison command center at 719-226-4001 or your local law enforcement agency.

The DOC said that though Onorato’s most-recent mug shot shows him with little facial hair and a bald head, he has since grown out his hair and beard.

Florence is located about 7 miles southeast of the Four Mile Correctional Center and is about 35 miles