Officers with the Chapel Hill Police Department assisted the capture of an escaped person from a Wake County prison on Thursday afternoon, according to officials.

The North Carolina Department of Safety released a statement saying Gerrhon D. Mills, a minimal custody offender, escaped from the Wake Correctional Center in Raleigh. He had last been seen around noon on Wednesday at the facility.

A spokesperson for the Chapel Hill Police Department said officers arrested Mills near the Eastgate Crossing shopping center located off East Franklin Street around noon. The NCDPS release said Mills was caught in the act of trying to steal a car.

According to the state department, Mills was serving a 17-year, 8-month sentence on habitual felonious charges before escaping. He was admitted to prison in 2011 and had been scheduled for a release in November 2025. Mills will now be additionally charged with escape.

“I want to thank our excellent law enforcement partners for their dedication, sharp eyes and their assistance, ” said Commissioner of Prisons Todd Ishee in the release. “Teamwork matters.”

The Department of Public Safety continues to investigate the circumstances of Mills’ escape from Wake Correctional Center, according to Thursday’s release.

Photo via the Town of Chapel Hill.

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