Manhunt for convict and former correctional officer comes to an end
The 11-day manhunt for a correctional officer and an inmate has come to an end. Police say Vicky White (56) a former correctional officer at the Lauderdale County Detention Center in Florence, Alabama, drove to the jail where she told colleagues she was taking inmate Casey White (38) to the court house for a mental health evaluation. (Though the two have the same last name, they are not related). After they did not return and Vicky White did not answer her phone authorities realized the two had gone missing. Shortly later authorities learned that an evaluation had not been scheduled and said Vicky White had used it as an excuse to sneak the inmate out without suspicion, triggering a nationwide manhunt.
Casey White was awaiting trial in a capital murder case and Vicky was the assistant director of corrections for Lauderdale County.
After the pair went missing police said they found Vicky White’s police cruiser abandoned near the detention center. An SUV that was purchased by Vicky had also been found impounded in Tennessee. On Monday, surveillance images of what appeared to show a man that matched the description of Casey White was released after investigators were notified on Sunday night that a 2006 Ford F-150 was discovered at a car wash. According to a release by U.S. Marshals, investigators determined the vehicle was used by Vicky White and Casey White.
In an announcement on Monday, law enforcement officials say, U.S. Marshals located and chased the couple in a vehicle in Evansville, Indiana. Casey was driving and Vicky was a passenger, Lauderdale County Sheriff Rick Singleton said. Authorities were able to stop the vehicle and apprehend Casey White and bring him into custody. Vicky White was initially taken to a hospital for treatment though the Alabama Sheriff did not elaborate on the nature or extent of her injuries. However, Alabama news WHNT learned through Indiana authorities that Vicky White had suffered a self inflicted gunshot wound. WHNT later learned Vicky White died at an Evansville hospital Monday night. an official autopsy will be performed Tuesday.
