A pack of wild coyotes in Illinois proved to be pivotal in the capture of an Iowa fugitive.

Daniel Rice, 21, was back in Muscatine County custody on Wednesday after slipping out of handcuffs while being tranferred from the Muscatine County Jail to a Muscatine hospital for treatment of a heart-related issue two days earlier.



Early Wednesday morning deputies in Rock Island County, Illinois, were dispatched after receiving a call about a pack of wild coyotes chasing two men at the Loud Thunder Forest Preserve in Illinois City, Illinois.



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Chief Deputy Steven VenHuizen said deputies recognized Rice when they arrived at the scene and noticed a pacemaker scar on his chest, The Muscatine Journal reported.



Rice has been arrested in Muscatine County three times since July on charges of theft, criminal mischief and burglary. A new charge was filed Thursday for escaping from custody, a class D felony.

Rice was ordered held on a $50,000 cash-only bond



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