A man who escaped from a Mississippi jail and is believed to have murdered a pastor while on the run has been killed in a police shootout.
Dylan Arrington, 22, and three other inmates broke out of the Raymond Detention Center near Jackson on Saturday night, police say.
The suspects reportedly fled via two breaches in the building, including one on the jail’s roof.
People in the area have been asked to remain vigilant.
The four prisoners were reported missing during a routine headcount at the medium security jail in Hinds County.
Authorities believe they escaped to the jail’s roof by nightfall and may have left the facility at different times.
Along with Arrington, the suspects have been identified as 51-year-old Jerry Raynes, and Casey Grayson and Corey Harrison, both 22.
The men were in custody on a variety of charges, primarily related to thefts. Raynes has a long history of escaping from jail, including from Raymond two years earlier, according to local authorities.
Arrington, who was serving time for firearm and auto theft charges, is considered the prime suspect in the fatal shooting of a local resident – Reverend Anthony Watts, 61.
Police say Rev Watts, the head pastor at a nearby Baptist church, was killed around 19:00 local time on Monday after pulling over to help a man – believed to be Arrington – who had crashed a motorcycle.
The pastor was found dead at the scene with multiple gunshot wounds and his vehicle, a red truck, had been stolen.
In a statement, daughter Kristin wrote that her father had “meant so much to so many” and “instilled so much into me”.
“I will miss him, and I know the days to come will seem very empty, but I know without a doubt where he is,” she said.
On Wednesday, police exchanged gunfire with a suspect barricaded inside a home in the city of Carthage.
The sheriff’s office in Leake County, where Carthage is located, said the standoff lasted about two hours and the building caught fire during the shooting.
A body found inside the charred home was later identified as Arrington.
A police investigator who was shot in the leg during the incident is now recovering in hospital.
Residents of Leake County were earlier advised to be “extremely cautious”, keep their doors locked and avoid having keys or weapons in parked vehicles.
But at least one of the remaining three suspects may have gone as far as Texas.
Police released surveillance footage showing Jerry Raynes at a petrol station in the city of Spring Valley, just outside of Houston.
Raynes is believed to have stolen a government public works vehicle that has since been recovered.
Conditions at the prison the four men escaped from this weekend has faced intense scrutiny over the past year.
In July, a federal judge seized control of Raymond, citing “severely deficient” conditions and a “stunning array” of assaults and deaths among detainees.
A public safety consultant was appointed as a “receiver” by the judge in October, with 120 days to devise a plan to improve conditions.
The judge’s order was stayed by an appeals court in December after local officials asked for the move to be reconsidered.
Source – BBC News
Leave a Reply