Storey escapee still on the run

Jeremy Morales

Jeremy Morales

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The search is still on for a man who escaped from the Storey County Jail Monday morning.

Jeremy Morales, 38, is believed to still be in the area, according to the Storey County Sheriff's Office. According to the sheriff, Morales plead guilty to the sexual assault of a minor, he was supposed to be sentenced on Monday.

Morales is 5 feet, 11 inches tall and weighs 220 pounds. He has brown hair and brown eyes.

He was last seen wearing horizontal striped jail clothing with "inmate" stenciled on the back, according to the Storey County Sheriff's Office.

Morales was unarmed when he escaped jail before 2 a.m. Monday, but is considered dangerous.

Morales may be "working his way down" from Virginia City, Storey County Sheriff Gerald Antinoro said. "We tracked him for several miles."

Although search teams have found signs of Morales in the area there have been no eye-witness reports.

"The U.S. Marshalls are working on it," Antinoro said. "We've got him in the national system already."

Law enforcement from neighboring counties are both aware of the escapee and have helped in the search, he said.

The Washoe County Sheriff's Office sent its helicopter up early Monday morning and again Monday afternoon.

"We're going to try to flush him out," Antinoro said, adding tracking dogs from multiple law enforcement agencies have been working to track him.

According to the Storey County Sheriff's Office, Morales had been "hiding in the shadows when the detention deputy performed a cell check," about 1:30 a.m. Monday. Morales was able to lock the deputy in the cell and escape the facility.

Anyone who sees Morales should immediately call 911 or their local law enforcement. Doors and windows should also be locked, Antinoro said.