GONZALES - A state inmate is back in custody after he abandoned his work release assignment Thursday.

The Livingston Parish Sheriff's Office says Paul Villar walked away from his landscaping job in Ascension Parish Thursday afternoon. He was later apprehended by Gonzales Police around 7:30 that same night.

Villar, a non-violent offender out of Livingston Parish, was booked into the Ascension Parish Jail.

Lock5 LLC, a private company, runs the work release program in Livingston Parish. Another inmate under that company's watch escaped late last year and was later found harassing his estranged wife in a neighboring parish.