Convicted killer serving life sentence escapes Quebec prison, caught in Toronto [Video]

A federal inmate serving life for murder escaped from a Quebec prison Monday – only to be found hundreds of kilometres away in Toronto.

Authorities say they noticed convicted killer Ricardo Vilches had vanished from the minimum security unit at the Archambault Institution in Ste-Anne-des-Plaines, Que., when he wasn’t present during head count at noon.

Correctional Service Canada (CSC) said an arrest warrant was issued for Vilches and he was arrested by Toronto police around 5:45 p.m. that same day.

“The CSC takes all escapes very seriously, as the safety and security of our communities remains the paramount consideration,” said CSC spokesperson Esther Mailhot in an email to Global News.

Vilches was charged with second-degree murder for the 1985 killing of his then-wife Patricia Fierro-Vilches and has spent the last 30 years incarcerated.

Corrections officials say they will investigate the circumstances surrounding Vilches’ escape.

This comes just a few days after two inmates with a “violent history” escapedfrom another minimal security institution in …