Four inmates, including a man being held for murder, escaped from a run-down Georgia jail through a damaged window on Monday and remain on the loose, authorities said.
The inmates broke out of the oldest section of the Bibb County Detention Center around 3 a.m. Monday and cut a fence before officials believe they fled together in a blue Dodge Challenger, the Bibb County Sheriff’s Office said during a press conference.
"These inmates were able to leave out of a day room window," Sheriff David Davis said. "The oldest run-down-est part of the jail."
The four inmates include 52-year-old Joey Fournier, 29-year-old Chavis Stokes, 24-year-old Marc K. Anderson and 37-year-old Johnifer Barnwell, the sheriff’s office said. The men were being detained on charges ranging from murder to drug trafficking.
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"They could be anywhere. We don’t know if they’re all together at this point," Davis said. "We don’t have any reason to believe that they had any association with each other out on the street, but they certainly had some type of association with each other inside the jail."
The escape occurred when fewer than 10 employees were working at the jail, which was holding about 800 inmates at the time. Officials also said many sections of the jail are old and in disrepair.
Davis said that schools in the area have been notified and warned that the inmates, three of whom have been in jail before, should all be considered dangerous.
The FBI and U.S. Marshals Office are assisting in the manhunt. Authorities have offered a $1,000 reward for tips leading to an arrest for each inmate.
"Somebody is probably laughing at the TV set saying, 'They'll never catch us. They'll never catch us.' We will catch them," the sheriff said. "They will come back to the jail. It's just a matter of when."
Authorities asked anyone with information about the whereabouts of the inmates or the vehicle to contact the Bibb County Sheriff’s Office at 478-751-7500 or Macon Regional Crime Stoppers at 1-877-68CRIME.
