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'It's very embarrassing': Pulaski County Sheriff breaks down how 5 inmates escaped his jail

The sheriff says there was at least an hour and half delay in reporting the five inmates escaped because the jailers were locked in the cell

WARNER ROBINS, Ga. — After three days of searching, authorities finally reached a break in the search for five inmates who escaped the Pulaski County jail Friday night. 

Sunday evening, the U.S. Marshals and Warner Robins Police Department captured Tyree Jackson and Lewis Evans. Jackson was originally in jail for car-break-ins. Lewis Evans was in the Pulaski jail for allegedly obstructing an officer. 

Three of the five inmates remain on the run: 

  • Dennis Penix, accused of killing two men in 2017 in a "drug deal gone bad"
  • Brandon Pooler, accused of child cruelty 
  • Tyree Williams, charged with felony murder and home invasion
Credit: 13 WMAZ

The Escape

Pulaski County Sheriff Danny Brannen says an inmate was giving a jailer trouble getting into the cell around 11 p.m. Friday. 11 p.m. is when lights should be out and all inmates locked down, Brannen said. 

He says the jailer stepped into the cell, trying to get the inmate in, when she was attacked. 

"You can do that if you have enough people to help you," Brannen said. 

One of the inmates was Dennis Penix. 

Sheriff Brannen says the inmates threatened to kill her, took her personal car keys, and attacked the only other jailer working that night. 

He says there should have been four jailers working; however, Brannen says the sheriff's office is understaffed. 

The inmates then let three other inmates out of a different cell, stole two Tasers out of the jail's control room and escaped in a jailer's personal car-- a 2015 white Kia Sedona. 

Brannen says it wasn't reported that the five inmates escaped and the car stolen until at least an hour-and-a-half after the attack. Why? Because the only two people working were locked in a cell by the inmates. 

"Our jailers were locked in the cell. The deputies went out there to check on [the jail] because a fire alarm went off," Brannen said, explaining how deputies found the jailers. 

The Search

Brannen says state agencies were then called in to assist, and later, a blue alert issued. 

Since, the U.S. Marshals, Georgia Bureau of Investigation and multiple other local law enforcement agencies have assisted Pulaski County in the search.

Between Friday evening and Sunday afternoon, Sheriff Brannen says they had no leads. 

Sunday night, authorities had the first break in the case. 

One of the five inmates was spotted at the Taco Bell on North Davis Drive in Warner Robins just before 7:30 p.m. Sunday night. 

Shortly after receiving the tip, Tyree Jackson, who was originally in jail for car break-ins, was arrested during a traffic stop at the 7 Star convenience Store down the road from the Taco Bell.

Around the same time, U.S. Marshals and Warner Robins Police got a tip about the four other inmates. 

"The information we received was that there was a potential that the escapees could be in a shed in an area back behind a home on Magnolia Avenue," said Warner Robins Chief John Wagner. 

Just four hours after Jackson was arrested, authorities captured Lewis Evans near a shed behind a home on Magnolia Avenue. The home is less than a mile from the Taco Bell where Jackson was spotted. 

Wagner says police found the stolen 2015 Kia Sedona in Warner Robins Monday morning but would say where in the city it was found. He says that's part of the investigation. 

Authorities say it's just a matter of time before the other inmates are captured. 

"I do think they are getting hungry. They're getting cold," Wagner said. 

"They'll be caught eventually. They can only hide so long before they stumble up and make a mistake. Keep in mind they have no money. How far can they get?" said Captain Larry Jackson, jail administrator at the Pulaski County Sheriff's Office.

As of Monday night, three of the five remain on the loose. 

Sheriff Brannen described the escape as "very embarrassing" for the Pulaski County Sheriff's Office. 

"I don't think I have ever heard of five inmates getting out at one time, so. yeah, it's embarrassing. It sure is," Brannen said, "But there ain't nothing you can do about it. They done gone out. All you can do now is work as hard as you can to get 'em back in." 

As for where the other inmates could be located, Sheriff Brannen says they could be anywhere in the state, but all of them are from the middle Georgia area. 

The U.S. Marshals Service is offering a reward of up to a $5,000 reward for information leading to their arrest. 

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