Convicted killer, 85, arrested by Toronto police after Quebec prison escape

Ricardo Vilcher, 85, was serving a life sentence for second-degree murder when he escaped from Archambault Institution in Sainte-Anne-des-Plaines, Que. (Source: Correctional Service of Canada)

A convicted killer who escaped from a Quebec prison has been arrested in Toronto.

Ricardo Vilches, 85, was unaccounted for during the noon head count Monday at Archambault Institution, a minimum security institution in Sainte-Anne-des-Plaines, Que., about 40 kilometres north of Montreal.

The Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) said Vilches, who is serving a life sentence for second-degree murder, was the subject of an arrest warrant and authorities were working with Quebec provincial police to locate him.

The CSC confirmed Monday evening evening that the inmate was arrested by Toronto police at around 5:45 p.m.

A Toronto police spokesperson declined to say where he was arrested, but said he was apprehended without incident and was not armed.

The correctional service said it is launching an investigation into the incident.