Authorities are asking the public for help as they search for a sexually violent predator who violated the terms of his conditional release.
The San Diego County Sheriff's Office said Merle Wakefield's GPS device alerted to "tamper mode" while he was working in Rancho Bernardo during the early morning hours of Sept. 25.
Authorities said Wakefield is supervised by Liberty Health Care as part of California's conditional release program. When supervisors arrived, they discovered that Wakefield's GPS had been removed.
The Sheriff's Office said Wakefield is currently wanted for violating the terms of his release. He was convicted in 1980 and 1991 for lewd or lascivious acts with a child under 14 years old and rape by force.
Wakefield has been part of the conditional release program since 2024.
Wakefield is 5 feet 10 inches tall, weighs 230 pounds and has brown eyes.
Anyone who sees Wakefield is warned not to approach or contact him, and to contact local law enforcement or call 911.
San Diego County Supervisor Jim Desmond issued a statement on social media Sunday.
"It's been more than 48 hours since Merle Wakefield took off his GPS monitor and walked away. He's still out there," Desmond posted on X. "A convicted child molester and violent rapist is loose in San Diego County this weekend, and the state that put him here has said nothing. If you see him, do not approach. Call 911."
Desmond's post was a follow-up to a post on Friday.
"The unfortunate reality is that what happened with Merle Wakefield could have happened at any time," he wrote. "As long as the state keeps releasing sexually violent predators into our neighborhoods, families are one tampered ankle monitor away from this. These people don't belong anywhere near our communities. They belong locked up in a secure state facility. Period."
According to a news release issued in November 2024 by the SDSO, Wakefield "was conditionally released from Coalinga State Hospital. Wakefield is registered as a SVP with the California Department of Justice and the County of San Diego. He has served several years in state prison for his crimes before his civil commitment to a state mental hospital for sex offenders."
Wakefield was released into the community as a transient by court order. He was temporarily housed in the East County community of Jacumba Hot Springs under the Conditional Release Program, after residents of Mt. Helix strongly opposed his planned placement in their community.
He has a lifetime requirement to register as a sex offender and was under 24-hour supervision by Liberty Health Care, a private company contracted by the state of California.
The 2024 SDSO news release also said Wakefield had several conditions that are enforceable by Liberty Health Care personnel, including having a security employee who accompanies him on a 24/7 basis.
