Murder suspect among 3 inmates who escaped from DeKalb jail, sheriff says

Three DeKalb County inmates, including one charged with murder and one previously convicted of it, escaped from the jail early Monday, according to investigators.

The three men were found to be missing during a routine security check, prompting a search of the jail, DeKalb Sheriff Melody Maddox said in a statement. Local law enforcement agencies were alerted to the escape, and the U.S. Marshals Service was also involved in the search, according to the chief deputy for the agency’s Northern District of Georgia.

“We take this breach very seriously and are working diligently to ensure these individuals are safely returned to custody as quickly as possible,” Maddox said.

News of the escape comes less than three weeks after a Rockdale County inmate escaped custody while at Grady Memorial Hospital, leading to a search that spanned several metro Atlanta counties. After nearly three days, Timothy Allen Shane, 52, was located in Newton County and returned to custody.

On Monday morning, the DeKalb sheriff’s office released the names of the three inmates accused of escaping. They are: Stevenson Charles, 24, charged with murder and armed robbery; Yusuf Minor, 31, charged with two counts of armed robbery and two counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony; and Naod Yohannes, 25, charged with simple assault, arson and unlawful acts of violence in a penal institution.

According to his 2024 indictment, Charles is accused of shooting and killing Carl Steinke in November 2022. He also allegedly stole Steinke’s 2006 Dodge Charger and a cellphone, court records state.

Charles has already been sentenced to life in prison for a separate case in Gwinnett County. In November 2024, he pleaded guilty to false imprisonment, aggravated sodomy, two counts of kidnapping, two counts of armed robbery and two counts of aggravated assault, according to the district attorney. He was ordered to serve a life prison sentence with the possibility of parole for those crimes, which also happened in November 2022, according to Gwinnett court records.

Charles is the primary focus of the search by federal marshals. That’s because he was also convicted of federal armed carjacking charges in Florida.

“Let the message go out to Mr. Charles and all other fugitives. We are looking for and we will find you,” Thomas E. Brown, the U.S. Marshal for the Northern District of Georgia, said in a statement. “Any person who violates the laws of the United States will not be allowed a moment of rest. You will never find peace. You will answer for your crimes.”

Minor is already serving a life sentence for a Clayton County murder, according to the Georgia Department of Corrections.

In early 2024, he was convicted of malice murder, felony murder, two counts of aggravated assault and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, the district attorney previously said. Minor’s life sentence includes an additional 25 years, but he will be eligible for parole.

In September 2024, a DeKalb grand jury indicted Yohannes on charges of arson and criminal damage to property, according to court records. While in jail, he was charged with simple assault and riot in a penal institution, booking records show.