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NOCC walkaway found dead; suicide suspected

Friday, August 09, 2019

VINITA, Okla. – Overnight, correctional officers at Northeast Oklahoma Correctional Center discovered the body of walkaway Ricky Bauders. Officers found Bauders’ body behind an outdoor storage area on the edge of the minimum-security prison’s grounds.  

The building is near a hay field where ODOC K9 officers tracked him yesterday.  

ODOC investigators believe Bauders went to the storage area during a rainstorm overnight and took his own life. 

Both ODOC investigators and investigators with the Oklahoma Office of the Chief Medical Examiners are working to determine the circumstances around Bauders’ death. 

Bauders ran away from the facility around 6 p.m. Tuesday. Since then, ODOC staff and area law enforcement searched for him around the clock. Witnesses last reported seeing him Wednesday morning.

Bauders had previous convictions for grand larceny, drunk driving, drug possession and credit card fraud dating back to 1986.

NOCC has been on lockdown since Bauders’ walkaway.

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Oklahoma Department of Corrections
3400 North Martin Luther King Avenue
Oklahoma City, OK 73111-4298

 

 

If you or someone you know is thinking about suicide, call Onelife at 800-559-9544 or the National Suicide Prevention lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).

In Compliance with the reporting requirements of 74 O.S. 3106.4[C], this agency is making known that it stores name, birth date, place of birth, mother's maiden name, biometric records, Social Security number, official state or government issued driver license or identification number, alien registration number, government passport number, and employer or taxpayer identification numbers. The personally identifiable data is stored both electronically and in confidential paper files. The data is shared in compliance with court orders and agreements with other government bodies.