2 escaped California homicide suspects captured hundreds of miles away at Mexico border

Two homicide suspects who escaped from a Northern California jail over the weekend have been captured hundreds of miles away near the Mexico border, authorities said Wednesday.

Santos Fonseca, 21, and Jonathan Salazar, 20, were found overnight near Tijuana trying to walk back into the United States from Mexico, according to the Monterey County Sheriff's Office.

They were taken into custody together by Customs and Border Protection agents, authorities said.

It is not clear how they traveled the hundreds of miles from Monterey County to Mexico, said authorities.

Fonseca and Salazar escaped Sunday morning from the Monterey County Jail in Salinas, a city about 60 miles south of San Jose, when they were able to "exploit" a "blind spot" in the facility, according to authorities.

They created a hole about 22 inches wide in the ceiling above a bathroom in their housing unit, which enabled them to climb in and work their way through, authorities said.

On the other side of the bathroom wall, which is a space that houses pipes for plumbing, they allegedly kicked in a hatch that led to the outside.

Since the jail is under construction, the outdoor area was covered in construction fencing, rather than security fencing with barbed wire, and the two were able to leave the jail's grounds, authorities said.

At least three improvements have since been made to this housing unit, sheriff's officials said Wednesday. Officials did not elaborate on the improvements.

Fonseca and Salazar will not be housed in that unit now that they have been caught, authorities said. They will be housed alone, authorities said.

Additional escape charges are expected, authorities said.

Fonseca was booked on June 7, 2018, for charges of murder and attempted robbery on a $2.25 million bond, according to court records. He allegedly shot and killed two people earlier that month, The Californian reported.

Salazar was arrested on July 7, 2018 for a murder that was committed in October 2017, according to the Salinas Police Department. He and an unnamed minor were charged with killing a man and attempting to murder his girlfriend after Salazar allegedly fired into the couple's car with their 18-month-old child inside, The Californian reported.

The child was not injured in the shooting.

Other charges Salazar was being held on include vehicle theft, conspiracy to commit a crime, violation of probation and possession of a stolen vehicle, according to court records.

Both suspects are en route back to Monterey County on Wednesday, according to authorities.