Last of 4 escaped Mississippi detention center inmates captured

By Rebekah Riess, CNN

The last of four men who escaped from a Mississippi jail last month was taken into custody Thursday morning, according to an update from the Hinds County Sheriff’s Office.

Escapee Corey Harrison was taken into custody by the Hinds County Sheriff’s Office and the US Marshals Fugitive Task Force at a residence in Crystal Springs, Mississippi, the update said.

According to the sheriff’s office, a female acquaintance was also arrested and is facing charges stemming from the investigation surrounding the inmates’ escape.

One of four Mississippi jail escapees, Dylan Arrington, was found dead April 26 in a burned home in Carthage, Mississippi, the Hinds County sheriff said.

Escapee Jerry Raynes was captured in Spring Valley, Texas, a day later.

And authorities said Casey Grayson was found dead in New Orleans Wednesday.

The four men were discovered missing from the Raymond Detention Center west of Jackson, Mississippi on April 23, Hinds County Sheriff Tyree Jones said.

After the jail was placed on lockdown, staff found two breaches inside the facility — one in a cell and another in the roof, the sheriff said. Authorities believe the group climbed onto the roof around 8:30 p.m. Saturday, camped there, and left the property at different times, he said.

Prior to the escape, Raynes was being held on charges of auto theft and business burglary, the sheriff’s office said. Arrington had been charged with auto theft and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, while Grayson was being held on charges of grand larceny and sale of a controlled substance, according to the sheriff’s office. Harrison was facing a charge of receiving stolen property before the escape, officials said.

Arrington is suspected of shooting and killing a man in Jackson Monday before stealing the victim’s red Dodge Ram 1500 truck and driving away, Jackson Police Chief James E. Davis said in a statement.

Police officers who were called to the scene found the victim lying unresponsive in the roadway on Monday evening, Davis said. Investigators determined the victim had pulled over on the side of the road to help Arrington, who appeared to have wrecked a motorcycle stolen moments earlier, Davis said.

Based on information gathered, investigators believe Arrington shot the victim several times and then stole his truck, Davis said.

The victim was identified as local pastor the Rev. Anthony Watts, according to local authorities and a church associate.

A witness reported seeing a Hinds County Public Works vehicle crash through a gate around 9:30 p.m. Saturday, Jones said. The vehicle was later found abandoned more than 400 miles away in Spring Valley Village, Texas, he said.

Another truck was stolen near the detention center at around 2:30 a.m. Sunday, and a witness described two unidentified men in the vehicle, Jones said. Though investigators have not been able to confirm it, they believe the theft is connected to the escapees, he said.

The stolen red Chevy Silverado was last seen Sunday morning headed into Mississippi’s Rankin County, which is east of Jackson, he said.

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2023 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

CNN’s Sara Smart, Amy Simonson, Holly Yan, Elizabeth Wolfe, Devon M. Sayers, Alta Spells and Emma Tucker contributed to this report.