Former Rochester man who walked away from halfway house turns self in

Stephen Paul Edgerly Sr. (Police mugshot)

MANCHESTER - The former Rochester man who walked away from a prison halfway house on Friday voluntarily returned on Tuesday, according to a statement from the New Hampshire Department of Corrections.

Stephen Paul Edgerly Sr., 44, formerly of Rochester, left the Calumet Transitional Housing Unit at 5 a.m. Friday morning to report to work, but never returned at the end of his shift around noon.

Officials did not indicate what punishment Edgerly might face for not returning to Calumet directly after work.

Edgerly was sentenced in Strafford County Superior Court to 2½-5 years for Failure to Register as a Sex Offender. He was admitted to the New Hampshire State Prison on May 15, 2015, and was eligible for parole on June 12 with a maximum release date of Dec. 14, 2019. He is also on parole for Witness Tampering and First Degree Assault, also from Strafford County Superior Court.

A walkaway from a transitional housing unit is considered to be an escape, which can be prosecuted as a Class-B felony, punishable by 3½-7 years in prison.