ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – How did a convicted teenage killer escape Bernalillo County’s Youth Detention Center this past weekend?

19-year-old Josef Toney was on the run for 12 hours before he eventually turned himself in. Now, we’re getting answers from a county leader who says it was a series of failures on multiple levels, at a facility that’s come under a lot of scrutiny recently. 

“He was able to pick the lock, get out, then proceed from there to the roof of the facility then out,” said Greg Perez, a Bernalillo County Deputy Chief of Public Safety. 

It wasn’t until head count three hours later when staff noticed Toney was missing.

“Some things that occurred within the individual’s holding cell that led us to believe he was still in there, possibly asleep,” said Perez. “Still is fault back on us for not doing a thorough wake-up, not having everyone stand up, coming out of their cell doing an actual physical count.” 

Toney, who was convicted of killing two people in 2016, was on the run for 12 hours before he turned himself in. 

Perez says center staff called 911 once they discovered Toney was missing. Albuquerque police responded, but there was confusion. 

Perez says the officer thought they were investigating a missing person, not an escaped killer. 

“My understanding is they did dispatch an officer there and a missing person’s report was filed is what I’ve been told, and that was kind of the end of it there,” Perez said. 

That miscommunication is being investigated, and Perez says there are changes happening at YSC.

“Going back through all of our policies and procedures, doing reviews on the units with each of the staff,” said Perez. 

They plan to upgrade the facility too. Perez says they’re bringing in a security analysis expert next week to identify what needs to be updated. 

He also says staffing is still a challenge, with a shortage of more than 20 youth program officers. They’ve hired nearly 50 since December. Two of them are on administrative leave following the escape. 

Perez says while they’ve all completed their six weeks of training, they still lack experience.

“The key to a good YPO in any facility is attention to detail, and sometimes you can’t teach that,” said Perez.

Perez says the push to hire more people include a director for the facility. He expects that position to be filled by the end of June. It’s been open since September.

KOB 4 spoke to Bernalillo County Sheriff John Allen after the escape. He’s brought up issues with the facility before, but he also is pushing for changes to our state’s children’s code. 

A spokesperson for our governor implies that won’t happen until next year’s 60-day session. Allen also wants people held at the YSC to go to the Bernalillo County jail once they turn 18. 

There will soon be a new Bernalillo County Manager to oversee what goes on at the YSC.

Commissioners KOB 4 spoke with Wednesday agreed the center has to be a big focus of the hiring process.

“It’s a great concern for me,” District 3 Commissioner Adriann Barboa said.

“It’s a tough environment for any leader right now,” District 4 Commissioner Walt Benson said.

Despite Perez saying the facility is still more than 20 positions short, it appears there’s some confusion among county leaders over the actual staffing situation at the center.

“Now we are at full staffing capacity, which was the biggest thing,” Barboa said.

A lack of funding has been another concern, but commissioners said Wednesday that the center has all the funding it needs. They said there’s been a lot of positive progress since the incident this past Christmas, when some teens barricaded themselves inside the center, vandalized it and had a standoff with deputies.

Even still, many worry there will be more incidents.

“It’s a powder keg where one spark can ignite a big explosion, and really, that’s where we are,” Benson said.