Law enforcement looking for escaped prisoner

Local law enforcement is looking for a Havre woman who escaped Monday afternoon from custody after her sentencing hearing at Hill County Courthouse.

Maria Rose Oppelt, aka Maria Rose Newton, was in the custody of a Probation and Parole officer at District Court and waiting for a law enforcement officer to take her to Hill County Detention Center after her sentencing hearing when she made her escape shortly before 4 p.m., Police Capt. Aaron Wittmer said.

District Court Judge Kaydee Snipes Ruiz had sentenced Oppelt to two years in prison for obstruction of justice, harboring a fugitive and a drug charge then asked Oppelt to wait in a seat inside the courtroom until law enforcement arrived, he said. Oppelt waited for a while then asked to go to the bathroom.

The parole officer was on the phone with law enforcement and started to accompany Oppelt to the bathroom when Oppelt made a quick break for the stairs, evading the parole officer's attempt to catch her, Wittmer said.

Oppelt drove away from the courthouse in a red pickup truck.

Law enforcement officers searched Oppelt's residence and the area, Wittmer said, and when they returned to her residence, the pickup was sitting empty outside, and Oppelt was not home.

Oppelt, who Wittmer said has ties to both Havre and Great Falls, was last seen wearing a pink shirt, blue jeans and her hair in a braid.

If anyone sees Oppelt they can call 911, Havre Police at 406-265-4361 or Hill County Sheriff's Office at 406-265-2512.