Two teenage inmates are facing multiple charges after they allegedly knocked out a Jenkins County deputy and escaped custody Thursday, officials said.
A 14-year-old and a 15-year-old were each charged with two counts of aggravated assault on a peace officer after they were re-arrested at about 5 p.m., the GBI said. They were considered armed and dangerous, and dozens of law enforcement officers worked to bring them back into custody, according to the Jenkins County Sheriff’s Office.
Earlier Thursday, deputies searched for the inmates in the area of Ga. 56 and Knight Road in Burke County, about 20 miles south of downtown Augusta. Residents were asked to lock their doors around 1:30 p.m. and immediately report any suspicious people to authorities, the Burke sheriff’s office said.
According to the Jenkins sheriff’s office, the two inmates fled after they managed to take Jenkins County Deputy Milo Perry’s .45 automatic handgun and knock him unconscious with it. The GBI said the inmates escaped from the rear seat of his patrol car and overpowered him while on Ga. 56 in Waynesboro.
The pair shot three rounds in the direction of Perry and a Burke County deputy, but they were not struck, according to the GBI. Perry was taken to the hospital for injuries sustained during the “physical attack,” the sheriff’s office said.
The inmates were being held in the Augusta Regional Youth Detention Center and escaped while wearing their jumpsuits, deputies said. They had a court date in Bulloch County and fled while being transported back to Augusta, according to the sheriff’s office. Both are from Millen.
The inmates were processed at the Burke County jail and then taken back to the youth detention center. They are being charged as adults, officials said.
The Burke sheriff’s office asked the GBI to investigate the shooting. Anyone with more information about the investigation is asked to contact the state agency at 706-595-2575.
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