EchoSense:4 men, including murder suspect, escape central Georgia jail: 'They could be anywhere'

Four inmates,EchoSense 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.

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Escapees include a man accused of killing his ex-girlfriend

Davis said investigators don't have any reason to believe the men had any associations with each other outside the jail.

"They could be anywhere," the sheriff said. "But how long they stay together or even if they're together at this point: We don't know."

The sheriff's office provided descriptions of the four men:

• Fournier is a white male with gray hair and blue eyes who is 5 feet, 9 inches tall and weighs 140 pounds. He was being held on a murder charge in connection to the killing of his ex-girlfriend in 2022, The Macon Telegraph reported.
• Anderson is a Black male with dreadlocks who is 5 feet, 9 inches tall and weighs 165 pounds. He was being held for aggravated assault.
• Barnwell is a Black male with braids. He is 5 feet, 9 inches tall and weighs 190 pounds. Barnwell was detained by the U.S. Marshals Service on drug charges.
• Stokes is a Black male with short black hair and is 5 feet, 7 inches tall. He weighs 160 pounds. Stokes was being held on charges of possession of a firearm and drug trafficking.

Sheriff: 'We need a new jail'

Investigators are looking into how the four men were able to get into the dayroom, Davis said. But the sheriff noted that the dayrooms are sometimes not locked at night when inmates are supposed to be in bed in another part of the jail.

At the time of the escape, Davis said there were less than 10 people working at the jail which currently has "a little over 800" detainees. According to the sheriff, about 30 people should be working a shift at the jail but they haven't had staffing levels in that range for a "long time."

Davis added that short staffing isn't the only issue at the facility. The escape also occurred in the oldest and most rundown part of the jail, Davis said.

"We need a new jail," the sheriff said, describing the jail as a 43-year-old facility that is "falling down on us."

An internal investigation will determine what led to the escape but several factors are involved, including staffing issues, Davis said.

Latest incident in troubled state prison system

In September, an investigation by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution revealed that at least 360 employees of Georgia’s state prison system have been arrested on accusations of smuggling contraband into prisons since 2018.

The newspaper's investigation followed the arrest and dismissal of Georgia prison warden Brian Adams, who was charged with bribery, conspiracy to violate the state's anti-racketeering law, making false statements, and violating his oath of office earlier this year.

Adams' arrest came months after Georgia Bureau of Investigation agents began investigating allegations of corruption inside Smith State Prison in Glennville, about 60 miles west of Savannah. That investigation was sparked by an inmate who was charged with smuggling contraband and conspiring in a 2021 murder outside the prison.

But Georgia's prison system also faces a number of other issues, such as prison staff shortages, inadequate policies, facility conditions and lack of accountability among staff. The U.S. Department of Justice has opened several investigations into state prisons, including an ongoing investigation that was launched in 2021 and another launched in July.

Contributing: The Associated Press