The King County Sheriff’s Office helped detain two escapees from Snoqualmie’s Echo Glen Children’s Center, a state juvenile detention facility.

Two boys — a 14-year-old convicted of murder and possession of a firearm, and a 16-year-old convicted of robbery — escaped from the facility after 8 p.m. on Dec. 6. Ryan Abbott, spokesperson for the Sheriff’s Office said the suspects simply exited the facility’s gymnasium and ran into the woods.

Security guards followed but eventually called police to assist with the search. Abbott added that police were unable to use K-9 units to track the escapees because the guards had contaminated the area with their scent, so police called the Sheriff’s Office Guardian 1 helicopter to assist with the search.

Eventually, a security guard found the two escapees and escorted them back to the facility.

Echo Glen is on the 33000 block of Southeast 99th Street and holds about 135 male and female youth in residence. The youth range from age 10 to 20 and come from all throughout the state.

The center is a medium/maximum security facility that is not fenced because it’s bordered by natural wetlands, Icy Creek and Lake Kittyprince.

The Echo Glen Children’s Center holds about 135 male and female youth in residence. The youth range from age 10 to 20 and come from all throughout the state. Photo courtesy of the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services