SALEM, Oregon — TJ Harvey Bennett, an incarcerated adult with the Oregon Department of Corrections (DOC), left a work party near the corner of SE 46th Place and Red Cherry Court SE in Salem around 3 p.m. on Monday, August 26.
Bennett, 44, is a white male, weighs 165 pounds, is 5’8″ tall, has hazel eyes and brown hair. He was last seen wearing blue jeans, a blue shirt and an orange vest.
Bennett was taken into DOC custody on October 9, 2023, for Burglary I in Columbia County. His earliest release date is March 16, 2025. Bennett was housed at Santiam Correctional Institution and worked on a work crew for the City of Salem.
The DOC Fugitive Apprehension Unit and the Oregon State Police are investigating.
Anyone with information on his whereabouts should contact Oregon State Police at 1-800-452-7888, the non-emergency number for their local police department, or the DOC Fugitive Apprehension Unit at 503-569-0734. Do not approach the fugitive Bennett.
Further information from DOC:
Bennett was housed at Santiam Correctional Institution (SCI), a minimum security prison in Salem that incarcerates approximately 440 adults who are due for release within four years. The facility focuses on employment opportunities, most of which come in the form of work crews that partner with state agencies, local organizations, and private businesses within a 60-mile radius of Salem. SCI offers a number of other correctional programs and services, including education, transition programs, and religious services. The building that now houses SCI was constructed in 1946 and was originally used as an annex to the Oregon State Hospital for the Mentally Ill. Over the years, it was used for various correctional purposes until it opened as SCI in 1990.
