Two inmates reportedly escaped a county jail by crawling through an air duct in the ceiling of one of the facility’s recreational areas. One has been apprehended but his partner is still on the run.
Inmates Michael Lewis and Joseph Spring reportedly escaped a Mississippi county jail on Monday. Spring had been incarcerated since November 2022 for parole violations and burglary charges, while Lewis had been in jail since December 2022 because of a DUI and marijuana possession charges.
According to Hinds County Sheriff Tyree Jones, the two 31-year-old inmates were able to breach the facility by climbing “inside the ceiling” above the jail’s recreation room — gaining access to the air duct and escaping the facility.
From there, Lewis and Spring jumped the fence and left the jail’s property.
The inmates were discovered to be missing after an official inmate headcount was conducted at the Raymond Detention Center on Monday morning, according to local news outlet WAFB.
Escapee alert 🚨 Michael Lewis-31 (Left) and Joseph Spring-31 (Right) were both missing from the Raymond Detention Center during this morning’s official headcount. A breach in the facility was later located along with fence damage. Anyone with information call 601-352-1521. pic.twitter.com/RVefAx7qbq
— TyreeJonesSheriff (@TyreeSheriff) May 29, 2023
The county sent out alerts to people in the area, warning them about the escaped convicts:
Anyone else get this Raymond Detention Center alert? pic.twitter.com/j8KkRm642J
— Mary J Thighs (@profeshtia) May 29, 2023
The Hinds County sheriff later reported that deputies had searched the area where Lewis and Spring left the jail grounds, with one deputy finding blood and “other items that may have belonged to the inmates,” according to WAFB.
Jones apologized for the incident at a Monday morning press conference, describing the calculated jailbreak as a “public safety breach.”
Deputies later found Lewis and arrested him near Seven Springs and Springridge Road. He will now be facing “additional escape charges,” WAFB reported.
Update: Escaped detainee, Michael Lewis-31 is back in custody. He was captured moments ago by HCSO Deputies searching the area of Seven Springs Rd. and Springridge Rd. He faces additional escape charges. The search is still ongoing for Joseph Spring. Call 601-352-1521 with info. pic.twitter.com/DS9W4sJjvp
— TyreeJonesSheriff (@TyreeSheriff) May 29, 2023
According to the sheriff, local officials are still working to track down Spring.
Many local residents have expressed outrage over the incident, especially because this is not the first time this year that convicts have escaped from the Raymond Detention Center.
In April, four inmates escaped from the same facility — one of whom later killed a preacher and ultimately died in a house fire during a standoff with Leake County deputies. Another one of the escapees was later found dead in a white pickup truck at a truck stop in New Orleans, while the other two inmates were later recaptured.
During the press conference on the latest escape, Jones said that more funding for Raymond Detention Center is necessary “to be able to address some of these long-standing issues.”
