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Convicted rapist-robber escapes, may head here By DAMIAN MANN Mail Tribune A dangerous sex offender from Central Point escaped from Oregon State Correctional Institute Monday by wrapping himself in bubble wrap and hiding in a delivery truck. Jackson County Parole officer Cindy Carroll says she fears Leighton Wayne Bates, 41, could be headed back to this area. "He's definitely considered dangerous," said Carroll. "He's got nothing to lose." Sentenced to almost 40 years for rape, kidnapping and robbery, Bates has spent most of his adult life in jail. He was previously convicted of first-degree rape and attempted rape. Bates escaped from the prison in a delivery truck, even though there are five checkpoints and an escort, said Department of Corrections spokesman Gerald Long. He was last seen running across Interstate 5. "We failed on this one," he said. "This is a serious event. ... One that we don't ever want to have happen." The earliest he could have been released was December 2037, Long said. Bates was sentenced after an April 28 incident in which he posed as a stranded motorist who then kidnapped and raped a Eugene teen near Springfield while another male teen was also in the car. He then stole the victim's car at gunpoint and drove away, crashing it in Gold Hill. Carroll fears that Bates, who has twice before attempted to escape, might be headed back to the Jackson County because his family lives here. She also worries that his criminal behavior is escalating, since he used both a knife and gun to commit the last rape. "Whenever someone attacks strangers, they're a lot more dangerous," she said. "When you add drugs to this, it creates quite a mess." Long concurred with her assessment. "I would say he is a dangerous person," he said. Carroll said she is somewhat surprised by the escape, since Bates pleaded guilty to the charges against him. "Basically, he said he needed to be locked up," she said. Bates is described as 200 pounds and 5-foot-9. He has blue eyes and blond hair and has a barbed wire tattoo on his left wrist and another tattoo of a knife and cross on the left forearm. He wears glasses and reportedly shaved his head. Reach reporter Damian Mann at 776-4476, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.