2 escaped Orange County jail fugitives taken into custody in San Francisco

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- The two remaining Orange County fugitives, who had escaped the Orange County Central Men's Jail on January 22, were taken into custody near Golden Gate Park in San Francisco around 9 a.m. Saturday.

Hossein Nayeri, 37, and Jonathan Tieu, 20, were arrested by SFPD.

Just before 9 a.m., a citizen flagged down officers in the Park District regarding a suspicious person and vehicle.

The citizen informed the officers the vehicle matched the description of a stolen van associated with the fugitives, as well as an individual possibly matching an escapee's description.

Officers located the possible suspect at Waller and Stanyan streets, where a foot pursuit ensued around Kezar Stadium and the Park District Police Station. The suspect, later identified as Nayeri, was apprehended shortly after and without further incident.

The suspicious van was located at Haight and Stanyan streets, where officers discovered Tieu hiding inside. Officers were able to apprehend Tieu without further incident and transported both escapees to Park Station for further investigation.

Police Chief Greg Suhr says, "This is an excellent example of how the public can help SFPD keep this city safe. A citizen saw someone suspicious, notified an officer, which ultimately led to the apprehension of two armed and dangerous criminals who escaped from jail. If you see something, say something, and excellent job to the officers from Park Station for putting themselves in harm's way to take these criminals off the streets."

Ammunition rounds were found inside the van.

"When we conducted a search of the van we did find 380 browns inside, those are ammunition rounds. We did not locate a weapon at this time," said San Francisco police spokesperson Grace Gatapandan at a news conference.

Orange County Sheriff Sandra Hutchins is grateful to that tipster and San Francisco police. "From the beginning and I told you we were going to capture these individuals," she said.

Bac Duong, 43, was the third inmate who had escaped with Nayeri and Tieu from the jail. He turned himself over to the Orange County Sheriff's Department Friday afternoon after flagging down a citizen.

Authorities believed Nayeri and Tieu were in the San Jose area and were heading to Fresno because of a family connection Nayeri had.

On Jan. 22, the trio escaped the jail in an elaborate escape plan that involved cutting through steel bars and plumbing tunnels and then rappelling down the building from the jail's roof. They had been accounted for around 5 a.m. that day and it wasn't until 16 hours later that authorities noticed their disappearance.

Larry Gray saw the dramatic arrest of the two fugitives unfold near Kezar Stadium where he works. "They captured him and then they got the other one on the other side of Haight in the truck," Gray said. Gray said he can't believe the pair were hiding in his neighborhood. "The idea of how smart they were to stay out of sight, but I guess there came time they couldn't stay in that long," Gray said.