An inmate who failed to return to the Centre County Prison from a furlough was captured in Patton Township Tuesday by police after he was charged with a minor traffic violation, authorities said yesterday.

David Crust, 28, of Monument was charged with escape Tuesday, Patton Township police said.

He was arraigned before District Justice Robert May and ordered to appear at a preliminary hearing in the Centre County Court of Common Pleas on Feb. 8, a spokeswoman for May's office said.

Crust left the Bellefonte prison with another inmate to attend an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting in the borough last Saturday, a prison official said. He allegedly failed to return by 9:15 p.m., the required time for furloughed prisoners to return, said James Jones, the prison's deputy warden.

Jones said both prisoners failed to attend the AA meeting, but the other inmate, whom he would not name, returned to the prison on time.

The other prisoner is not facing criminal charges but will be disciplined, Jones said.

Crust was stopped by Patton Township police Tuesday for a traffic violation, police said, and detained at the township police headquarters until Centre County deputy sheriffs could pick him up.

"We had received information that he was going to be in the area," said Patton Township police officer Richard Saupp.

Crust was convicted of simple assault last year, and was granted parole in July, Jones said.

On July 9, he violated that parole and was placed in the Centre County prison, Jones said.

"We've had people not return for different furloughs in the past," Jones said. "I've been here for 10 years and I think three other people beside Crust have failed to return."