BRIGHAM CITY — An inmate from the Box Elder County jail enjoyed less than an hour of freedom after a late-night escape Tuesday.

Joel Barriga fled through a window inside his cell after removing a cinder block along the window frame, according to the Box Elder County Sheriff's Department.

Barriga damaged a piece of jail equipment and used it to chip away at the mortar around the block and eventually break up the block itself, Chief Deputy Sheriff Lynn Yeates said.

Barriga was discovered missing during a late-night cell check. He was arrested shortly after midnight at a friend's house in Garland, Yeates said. He is believed to have stolen a car from a nearby construction site to make the 20-mile drive.

The jail will be on lockdown while the sheriff's office investigates the incident and takes precautions against a future reoccurrence, Yeates said.

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Barriga is a state inmate housed in the 3-year-old jail on aggravated assault charges. The Brigham City facility has the capacity to hold 150 inmates and currently houses about 120.

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