Prisoner escape from Sea-Tac Airport sparks search. Have you seen this man?
UPDATE: The Department of Corrections announced Wednesday afternoon that the escaped prisoner has been taken into custody. He was a passenger of a vehicle that investigators first saw in King County at 3:40 p.m. Investigators followed the car to Tacoma, where they arrested him without incident shortly after 4 p.m.
The search is on for a prisoner who escaped custody Tuesday evening as he was being transported through Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
This is reportedly at least the third time in 2025 that someone has escaped custody at Sea-Tac airport.
The Department of Corrections and local law enforcement are working to track down 20-year-old John Nino, the DOC announced in a news release. Nino is said to be 6 feet 2 inches tall, weighing 154 pounds.
Nino’s escape occurred just before 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 12. He’d been cuffed at the wrists and was wearing a red coat, as well as dark gray or black sweatpants.
A still shot taken from a surveillance video appears to show that Nino had removed his restraints. He was last seen by officers crossing the light-rail tracks heading in the direction of Highway 99.
Gov. Bob Ferguson on Tuesday night shared a Facebook post from DOC with information about Nino’s escape.
Nino was on community supervision after being convicted of second-degree robbery out of Thurston County, DOC said in the news release. When Nino failed to check in for meetings with his community corrections officer, the department put out a warrant for him in June.
Several days ago, Nino was arrested in New Mexico. He was being returned to DOC custody in Washington when he fled custody.
DOC urges anyone who sees Nino to call 911 and refrain from approaching him.
McClatchy asked DOC for more details on what led to Nino’s escape, and how he was able to break away from custody. Spokesperson Chris Wright said two officers were transporting the 20-year-old through Sea-Tac when he fled following the flight from New Mexico.
“We are focused on finding him at the moment, but will certainly conduct a critical incident review to look into how he was able to escape,” Wright said.
Another person in wrist restraints escaped custody at Sea-Tac airport three months ago before being caught more than a month later in Seattle, according to The Seattle Times. Last month, an El Salvadoran man got away from immigration agents while being led through the airport; he was recovered later that day close to the rideshare pickup area.
Nino has also racked up criminal convictions in King County, including two last year for firearm possession and a 2018 second-degree robbery.
This story was originally published August 13, 2025 at 11:50 AM.
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