Radio report of escape old news

Frontiersman staff

MAT-SU — Some Mat-Su Valley parents called the Mat-Su Borough School District Friday morning after hearing a report on a local radio station that said a prisoner had escaped from Mat-Su Pretrial.

District public information officer Catherine Esary said the station apparently aired a months-old broadcast by mistake.

“The station accidentally played an old message from January when a prisoner had escaped,” Esary said.

She said her phone rang several times Friday morning with calls from concerned parents who’d heard the report. Finally, a caller told Esary he’d heard the information on a local radio station.

Knowing that, Esary said she called the station, told them it was an error and they immediately stopped airing the announcement.

Since construction, only one inmate has managed to escape from the pretrial facility, according to information released by the Department of Corrections at the time of the January escape.

In the event of an emergency, Esary said the district would be proactive and notify parents by phone before notifying media outlets.

Community members who have questions or need more information should contact the district at 746-9200.