Police continue search for one of two teens who escaped youth detention center in Berks County

Updated on July 9, 8:45 a.m.

PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — One of two teens who escaped from a youth detention center in Berks County is still on the loose Tuesday morning, police said. They are searching Bucks County, where the boy is from. The other teen was taken into custody on Monday.

Officials said 16-year-old Dustin Lomas, of Bristol Township, and 18-year-old Tyler Lutz, of Reading, escaped from Abraxas Academy in Berks County around 5 p.m. on Saturday. It wasn’t until a few hours later that officials confirmed the pair was gone.

Lutz was apprehended around 8:30 p.m. Monday in Bucks County. Pennsylvania State Police said he was trying to blend in with local carnival workers in Tullytown Borough when a police officer spotted him. He was arrested without incident and arraigned but unable to post bail.

Investigators are still searching for Lomas in the Levittown area of Bucks County.

Abraxas Academy in Morgantown, Berks County is a secure detention center for young men with a history of problematic behavior, according to the facility's website.

Investigators said Lomas and Lutz escaped by climbing over a fence. Police did not say how they may have gotten to Bucks County from Morgantown, as it is an hour-plus drive.

This is the second time in less than a year that teens escaped from Abraxas. In September 2023, Pennsylvania State Police said a group of nine teens got away during a riot in the facility. The group split up but didn’t make it far, and police were able to arrest them within a few hours.

Pennsylvania State Police are handling the investigation. They ask anyone with information to call 911.

Police also urge residents to keep their vehicles and property secured.