Police arrest convicted murderer who escaped from Kingston, Ont. prison

Police are searching Joshua Kenneth Kohl, 42, an inmate at Collins Bay Institution in Kingston. Ont. He is serving a sentence for second-degree murder. (Ontario Provincial Police)

Police have apprehended a 42-year-old convicted murderer who escaped from a Kingston, Ont. prison.

Staff at Collins Bay Institution discovered Tuesday evening that Joshua Kenneth Kohl was unaccounted for, officials said.

Kingston Police said Wednesday he was arrested at Bath Road and Centennial Drive around 12:30 p.m., less than a kilometre from the prison's main entrance.

Kohl is serving an indeterminate sentence for second-degree murder. A warrant was issued for his arrest upon his escape.

The Correctional Service of Canada said in a statement Wednesday that it is conducting an investigation into Kohl's escape.

"CSC takes escapes very seriously and public safety remains the paramount consideration," a spokesman said in a statement. "CSC will conduct an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident to better understand how this happened."

Collins Bay Institution is just west of downtown Kingston. It has minimum, medium and maximum-security facilities with an overall capacity of about 760 inmates. The Correctional Service of Canada said Kohl escaped from the minimum-security unit.

"Now that the offender has been recaptured, CSC will conduct a new risk assessment to determine the appropriate security level moving forward."