Homeless Man Gets $100,000 Reward for Helping Catch Escaped Prisoners

A homeless man who helped San Francisco police catch two escaped prison inmates has been rewarded with $100,000 for his service.

Hossein Nayeri, Jonathan Tieu and Bac Duong escaped from the Orange County Central Men’s Jail in January, ABC News reports. While Bac Duong turned himself in after a few days, the other two remained at large until Matthew Hay-Chapman spotted them and guided the police to their whereabouts. Hay-Chapman said he noticed a van in a parking lot with heavy condensation on the windows, which tipped him off that people were sleeping inside. When one of them got out, he recognized his face from news reports of the prison break.

Smaller rewards of $15,000 each went to two Target employees who reported seeing the escapees as well as a $20,000 reward for a man who reported his van had been stolen by them but the bulk of the award went to Hay-Chapman. In a February interview, he said he would use any reward money to begin a new life and help his children and grandchildren.

[ABC News]