Escapee found just stone’s-throw away

HELENA – A Helena Prerelease Center employee, hearing something rustling in the bushes, chucked a rock at the shrub.

To his surprise, he heard someone say “Hey, you hit me in the head,” said Helena police Cpl. Bill Tompkins.

The rock had hit an escapee the center was searching for.

After getting off the bus in Helena on Friday, instead of his planned destination of Great Falls, Philmore Necklace, 22, was taken to the Helena Prerelease Center and was set to be transported to Great Falls in the morning, Tompkins said.

But about 9:50 p.m., employees noticed that Necklace was missing.

Police located Necklace near the center a short time after the worker heard him in the bushes. He was taken into custody for probation violation, Tompkins said.