Taft, California. On February 7, 2010, at 10:00 PM, while conducting the official count, staff at the Taft Correctional Institution discovered one inmate was missing from the Institution's Satellite Camp facility. The Satellite Camp is a minimum-security facility that houses approximately 550 federal inmates. There is no security fence around the facility, which is common for a minimum-security facility within the federal prison system. Minimum security is the lowest security level in the federal prison system.

Taft Correctional Institution immediately contacted all appropriate law enforcement agencies including the Taft Police Department, Bakersfield Police Department, Kern County Sheriff's Department, California Highway Patrol, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Maricopa Police Department, Federal Bureau of Prisons, and United States Marshals Service.

Omar Paniagua Zaragosa, Register Number 156365-019, was sentenced on June 21, 2005, in the Northern District of Georgia, to 180 months in federal custody for Conspiracy To Distribute At Least 5 Kilograms of Cocaine and Possessing A Firearm During A Drug Trafficking Crime. He arrived at the Taft Correctional Institution Satellite Camp on January 14, 2009, as a lesser security transfer from the Federal Correctional Institution in Yazoo, Missouri. His projected release date was November 8, 2017.

Inmate Omar Paniagua Zaragoza, a 33-year-old white male was born in Delano, California on May 7, 1972. He is 5'11" tall, and weighs approximately 200 lbs. He has black hair, and brown eyes, and a scar on his left shin. He has used the following aliases: Omar Zaragoza, Omar Paniagua, and Omar Paniagua-Zaragoza. His home address is listed as 2310 Glenwood Street, Delano, CA 93215. Prior to incarceration he was self-employed as a dishwasher and prep cook.

If anyone suspects they have seen this individual or obtains information as to his location, please contact the Taft Correctional Institution at 661-763-2510, or any law enforcement agency.