Inmate caught minutes after leaving camp

An inmate who walked away from Growlersburg Conservation Camp in El Dorado County was apprehended just minutes later on April 1. At around 7:40 a.m., camp staff discovered Jose F. Zamora was missing during a head count. Staff immediately initiated an emergency count, confirming Zamora was not at the camp. Agents from CDCR's Office of Correctional Safety were directed to locate and apprehend Zamora. Minutes later, camp staff apprehended Zamora near the camp without incident. He was returned to custody and will be rehoused at a prison. His case will be referred to the El Dorado County District Attorney's Office for consideration of escape charges. Zamora, 40, was received from Los Angeles County on Aug. 25, 2025. He was sentenced to two years for second-degree robbery. He has been housed at Growlersburg Conservation Camp in El Dorado County since Dec. 29. This is the second case of its kind at the Growlersburg Conservation Camp; in February, Juan David Veramancini was reported missing during a head count. There has not been an updated report on whether he was apprehended. CDCR says since 1977, 99 percent of the incarcerated people who have escaped or walked away from an adult institution, camp, in-state contract bed or Community Rehabilitative Program Placement have been apprehended.