Four inmates, including a murder suspect, are at large after escaping a central Georgia jail through a damaged window and a cut fence early Monday, authorities said.
Bibb County Sheriff David Davis said the inmates escaped from the Bibb County Detention Center in Macon, Georgia, about 84 miles southeast of Atlanta, at around 3:30 a.m. on Monday. He identified the four inmates as Joey Fournier, 52; Marc Kerry Anderson, 24; Johnifer Dernard Barnwell, 37; and Chavis Demaryo Stokes, 29.
“We are following up on some leads as to where these individuals may be,” Davis said at a news conference on Monday. “This is an all-hands-on-deck situation.”
Jail staff had found a break in the perimeter fence around 6 a.m., according to Davis. After reviewing video footage, jail staff discovered that the four men escaped from a window in a second-floor dayroom and ran out of a break in the fence.
Video footage also showed a blue Dodge Challenger that was outside the jail earlier in the night and appeared to show an individual tampering with the fence, Davis said. The person then brought “some items into the enclosed area of the fence,” the sheriff said, adding that authorities believe the items were used to help the inmates escape.
It was not clear whether the four men left the jail in the vehicle seen on the video footage, had gotten into another vehicle, or left on foot, according to Davis. He added that authorities believe the blue Dodge Challenger is involved in the escape and police are on the lookout for the vehicle.
Local, state, and federal authorities are working together on the search for the four inmates and are asking anyone who has information regarding their whereabouts to get in touch with the Bibb County Sheriff’s Office or Macon Regional Crime Stoppers. A $1,000 reward was also offered for information leading to the recapture of the men.
The four men’s escape is the latest in a string of jailbreaks across the United States this year, including the escape of convicted murderer Danilo Cavalcante from a Pennsylvania correctional facility in late August that triggered a two-week search.
The escape also comes amid troubling incidents within the Georgia prison system, specifically Fulton County Jail, where federal investigations have revealed unsanitary and unsafe conditions; deteriorating facilities; overcrowding; understaffing; and criminal activity.
Source : USA Today
