(CNN) – While the search continues for a missing former Alabama detective and a prisoner charged with murder, authorities are still in the dark about where the couple may have gone after the SUV they used after leaving prison , showed some new information in the case.
Ford SUV officials from 2007 believe that Vicky White, 56, and inmate Casey White, 38, traveled in during their escape from the Lauderdale County Detention Center in Alabama more than a week ago were located at a tow site in Tennessee, Sheriff Rick said Singleton Friday. during a press conference.
“The car was cleaned out,” the sheriff told CNN Saturday. “There was nothing left in the car. They obviously took everything they had with them.”
The correctional officer, who is no longer employed by the sheriff’s office, traveled with the inmate from the jail on the morning of April 29 and said she would take him to the courthouse for a mental health evaluation. She also said she would seek medical attention for herself after handing him over because she was not feeling well.
The couple never arrived at the courthouse or medical facility, prompting a manhunt involving local and federal authorities.
The two are not related but may have had a romantic relationship, Singleton has said.
“It’s been a tough week, a challenging week, a disappointing week,” Singleton told CNN on Saturday. “Ultimately, as sheriff, I’m in charge of the prison, and that’s on my shoulders.
“I want to see us get Casey White back behind bars and I want to see Vicky White brought in so we can understand exactly what she was thinking,” Singleton added.
Although the location of the SUV gave authorities a sense of what direction the couple was heading, investigators are still trying to gather their movements days after leaving prison in a patrol car.
‘Back to start’
Surveillance video from the jail showed the couple boarded a patrol car at the facility the morning after their disappearance, with Casey White handcuffed and handcuffed, officials said.
The patrol car was later abandoned in a mall parking lot near the jail with Vicky White’s jail keys, radio and handcuffs inside. The couple then drove off in an orange Ford SUV that Vicky White had purchased and left in the same parking lot the night before, Singleton said.
On Friday, authorities said they found the SUV, which had been at a tow site in Tennessee for about a week. The SUV was taken there after it was found abandoned in the woods and without any identification information on Friday.
Authorities believe the SUV may have experienced mechanical problems, prompting the sudden stop in this area.
The discovery means the couple drove about two hours north to Williamson County, Tennessee, after disappearing from prison in Florence, Alabama, Singleton explained during Friday’s press conference.
“We now know where the car is, we know which direction they were going,” the sheriff said. “We are trying to investigate the area for any witnesses, and are also trying to investigate whether stolen vehicles were reported in that area during that time.”
Investigators do not yet know if the couple stole another vehicle or got a ride with another, the sheriff said.
“We’re kind of back to square one,” he said. “After Friday afternoon, when they left that car, which direction they were going from there, we do not know.”
The experience of former officers could hinder search
Vicky White’s experience with law enforcement has helped the couple escape capture, officials say.
“Her knowledge of corrections and her knowledge of the procedures we use here in the sheriff’s office has certainly been to her advantage. I think it was a very well thought out plan, “Singleton said on Friday during the press conference.
Vicky White had handed in her retirement papers before she disappeared, and the day of the escape was to be her last day at work.
She now has an active arrest warrant to allegedly allow or facilitate escape in the first degree. She is no longer employed by the sheriff’s office, the office said.
Investigators believe she had a large amount of money when she and the inmate disappeared and she has used aliases, including to purchase the vehicle, Singleton said. “I’m assuming she’s probably dropped these aliases and probably got some new identities now,” he explained.
Furthermore, the pair should be considered armed and dangerous and may have an AR-15 rifle, handgun and a shotgun, the US Marshals Service warned.
Before fleeing, Casey White served 75 years for a number of crimes in 2015, including a home invasion, car hijacking and a police chase, according to the U.S. Marshals Service. He also faces two counts of capital murder for the stabbing of 59-year-old Connie Ridgeway in 2015, the service said.
The U.S. Marshals Service has offered up to $ 10,000 for information leading to the arrest of the inmate and up to $ 5,000 for the former officer. Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey also said an additional reward of $ 5,000 each for information leading to the couple’s arrest.
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