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Escaped SPTP resident arrested in Yoder
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Kevin James Snyder was captured by members of the U.S. Marshals Kansas Fugitive Apprehension Task Force arrested Snyder, and he was booked into the Reno County Jail.

YODER, Kan. — Kevin James Snyder, 59, was arrested Tuesday in Yoder after a farmer reported seeing him near a railroad line, according to the U.S. Marshals Service, District of Kansas.

Snyder was reported missing from the Sexual Predator Treatment Program at Larned State Hospital on Nov. 5. The Pawnee County Attorney’s Office said a review of hospital surveillance footage showed Snyder breaking through a window at the Meyer’s Building at approximately 3:30 a.m. and leaving the facility on foot.

He was later seen using an ATM in the 300 block of West 14th Street in Larned at about 5:40 a.m. and walking northeast near the intersection of 14th Street and Broadway shortly afterward. The U.S. Marshals Service said he was last seen on security footage heading east on foot.

At approximately 5 p.m. Tuesday, a farmer driving a tractor spotted Snyder near a rail line in Yoder and contacted law enforcement. Members of the U.S. Marshals Kansas Fugitive Apprehension Task Force arrested Snyder, who was booked into the Reno County Jail.

The Pawnee County Attorney’s Office previously said investigators believed Snyder remained in the Larned and Great Bend areas until Sunday, when he received a ride to the Yoder area. Officials are continuing to develop a detailed timeline of his movements.

Snyder has been designated a sexually violent predator since a 2005 conviction in Lyon County, according to the Kansas Offender Registry. The Pawnee County Attorney’s Office said aggravated escape charges were filed and an arrest warrant was issued Friday. The Kansas Department of Corrections also issued a parole warrant.

The U.S. Marshals Service assisted the Pawnee County Sheriff’s Office with the search. The Kansas Fugitive Apprehension Task Force includes the Marshals Service, Kansas Department of Corrections, Wichita Police Department, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Homeland Security Investigations, Drug Enforcement Administration and Kansas Highway Patrol.

Officials thanked the public and media for sharing Snyder’s photograph and providing private surveillance footage. According to the Pawnee County Attorney’s Office, that footage helped investigators identify possible travel routes and showed Snyder carrying a large backpack that may have contained camping supplies.

Snyder was reported apprehended without further details about the arrest being immediately released. All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.