Less than 24 hours after an escape from a prison transport van in Lawrence, a convicted Colorado sex offender is back in custody.

Deon Gregory Routt, 22, was spotted by police on foot patrol at about 3 p.m. Tuesday near 12th and Indiana streets.

Routt, who escaped from a prisoner transportation van Monday night, fled when officers attempted to contact him. Routt was arrested and sustained minor injuries following a two-block foot pursuit. He was taken to Lawrence Memorial Hospital before being transported to Douglas County Jail, McKinley said.

On Monday at around 5:30 p.m., Routt escaped from a prisoner transport van after the vehicle had stopped near 23rd and Louisiana streets.

Police spent several hours searching the nearby area but were unable to find Routt Monday or Tuesday morning.

Repeated calls from the Journal-World were not returned Monday evening, and police first sent out a news release about the incident Tuesday morning.

McKinley said Routt was being transported by Topeka-based Security Transport Services from Virginia back to Colorado. Routt had failed to register as a sex offender, and was arrested on a warrant issued by the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office in Colorado, according to a sheriff’s office spokesman.

Routt was convicted in 2011 of sexually assaulting a child in Colorado, but the crime occurred when Routt was a juvenile and additional information about the conviction was not available.

At least two employees from Security Transport Services were present during the escape, McKinley said. It’s unclear whether Routt had been shackled or handcuffed.

According to Security Transport Services’ website, the company is “one of the largest independent prisoner transport companies. Established in 1990, STS transports over 2 million miles annually, servicing all 50 states.”

The Journal-World was unable to reach a representative for the company Tuesday.