Inmate who escaped from western Pa. prison arrested in Philadelphia, U.S. Marshals say

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- A man who escaped from a western Pennsylvania prison last year was taken into custody while working out at a Philadelphia gym on Friday.

Isaiah Tilghman, 33, has been on the run since escaping the Blair County Prison back on Dec. 3, 2023.

On Friday morning, Philadelphia police and U.S. Marshals closed in on a gym in the Port Richmond section of the city.

"Plain clothes, K9 officers, marked officers, so when he came out there was no avenue of escape. We figured he was going to run. He has a history of flight, but we didn't let him get there today," said Robert Clark, Supervisory Deputy U.S. Marshal.

Marshals say Tilghman used a rope and the ventilation shaft to flee the prison.

On Dec. 15, the U.S. Marshals announced the discovery of an F-150 pickup truck, that Tilghman was believed to have used, in the 2600 block of S. Front Street in South Philadelphia.

This past year, the Marshals Fugitive Task Force in Philadelphia was tasked with finding eight escaped prisoners.

"The only person we were missing was Isiah Tilghman, so our task force now is eight out of eight escapees recovered," Clark said.

Tilghman was incarcerated for drug offenses and parole violations.