Two inmates who escaped from a minimum-security unit at Stony Mountain Institution are back in custody after being found inside a church that offers overnight shelter for the homeless.

Dale Jacob Gilchrist, 34, and William Benjamin Hunter-Garrioch, 21, were arrested early Tuesday morning in Winnipeg's Osborne Village neighbourhood after police received a tip.

They were located inside Augustine United Church, on River Avenue, which houses Just a Warm Sleep, an overnight shelter program run by 1JustCity.

Police would not release specific information on where they found the convicts but a spokesperson for 1JustCity confirmed the men had been located there and sent out a news release.

"The escapees had entered during the regular intake hours, which are 10-11p.m., run by volunteers. They signed in under fake names and proceeded to sleep as everyone does, following the code of conduct for respect in the space," the release stated.

Throughout the night, security on rounds just before 4 a.m. confidently identified the two sleepers as the escapees and promptly notified police."

Because the incident is a police matter, 1JustCity has declined interviews.

Gilchrist and Hunter-Garrioch will be charged with being unlawfully at large and returned to Stony Mountain, police said.

They walked away from the minimum security unit at the federal penitentiary, about 25 kilometres north of Winnipeg, on Saturday night, Correctional Service Canada (CSC) said in a release on Sunday.

Guards noticed they were missing during a head count at about 10 p.m., Stony Mountain assistant warden Guy Langlois said.

He said the pair escaped during regularly scheduled outdoor exercise in an area where there is no perimeter fencing.​

Hunter-Garrioch was serving a sentence of more than nine years for attempted murder, possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose, drug possession and failing to comply with a court order, according to CSC.

​Gilchrist, from Saskatoon, is serving a six-year sentence for armed robbery. He was arrested in 2015 after he and another man robbed a pharmacy in Brandon. He had previously served sentences for assault, theft and carrying a concealed weapon.

Prison near capacity

Langlois said Stony Mountain's maximum security unit is at capacity, the medium unit is at about 85 per cent capacity and the minimum security unit is at about 90 per cent capacity.

The minimum-security unit, which contains 27 houses with about eight inmates each, is transitional in nature and meant to help the men reintegrate back into society more smoothly, he said. Gilchrist and Hunter-Garrioch would have passed thorough screening assessments all medium-security inmates face before being moved to minimum security.

"In this case both individuals were assessed as low public safety risk and they were placed in minimum security," he said, adding "it's kind of puzzling" they would risk prolonging their sentences by leaving.

The pair's security clearances will be reviewed and it's unlikely they will be placed back in a minimum security unit, Langlois said.

"We will review our policies and procedures and ensure that the concerns expressed by the community are taken into account for the future," Langlois said.

CSC said it will investigate the escape.