All Four Jail Escapees Now In Custody

All four prisoners who escaped from the DeKalb County Jail early Wednesday morning are now back behind bars.
19 year old Jeffrey Hendrix and 34 year old Larry George were arrested Thursday night in Anderson County.
Sheriff Patrick Ray told WJLE early Friday morning that after interviewing witnesses, officers learned that the two prisoners had gone to east Tennessee. Authorities notified the Anderson County Sheriff’s Department of their whereabouts. He says George has relatives in that area. “When Anderson County officers arrived, they noticed a camp fire burning in a wooded area where the deputies were asked to check. When approached by the officers, the two men fled on foot but were quickly apprehended without incident. Hendrix and George were transported back to the DeKalb County Jail around midnight Thursday.”
They are charged with escape and aggravated burglary and two counts of theft over $1,000.
Sheriff Ray says through the investigation, detectives found that after their escape, Hendrix and George allegedly stole two bicycles and rode them to Toad Road where they broke into a home and allegedly stole some money, jewelry, and then made their getaway in a Jeep Cherokee at the residence. The two bicycles have been recovered but the Jeep Cherokee has not yet been found, although officers believe it could still be in the Anderson County area.
Total bond for each is $180,000 and their court date is November 8th.
21 year old Brandon Bias and 30 year old Ernest Hill were arrested on Wednesday. Bias was picked up at a residence on Allen Bend Road, Smithville while Hill was found near his home in Watertown. Both men were charged with escape.
Four others, 20 year old Randi Renee Atnip, 20 year old Julie Diane Ray, 22 year old Nicky Eudene Reece, Jr., and 20 year old Gary Christopher Ponder, were charged with aiding and abetting the escape of Bias by helping him hide from authorities.
The four prisoners made their escape early Wednesday morning by going through a skylight in the roof of the jail.
Sheriff Ray says he wants to thank Special Agent Billy Miller of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, surrounding county sheriff and police departments, local news media, and all citizens who called in information to the Sheriff’s Department.