On Tues., Aug..31, a detainee at the ICE facility in Raymondville was playing soccer with another group of detainees. The man who came to this country illegally is from El Salvador. While playing he fell and broke his hand. He was taken by ICE personnel to Valley Baptist Medical Center in Harlingen to have his hand x-rayed. Doctors asked a guard from ICE to remove the handcuffs from the patient's wrist so that they could x-ray his hand. Sometime during his examin-ation the man slipped out of the hospital and made a brief escape.

Police from Brownsville, Harlingen and San Benito joined the search for the fugitive who was reportedly walking toward Mexico. A Border Patrol helicopter joined the search and the man was soon spotted hiding in some brush. He was recaptured and returned to custody. Previously he had been designated a Level One detainee, meaning that he was not a criminal. But after charges of fleeing custody were filed against him, his designation was changed to Level Five, the highest rating reserved for dangerous criminals and he was transfered to a more secure fa- cility at Bayview.