A female corrections officer who allegedly helped a murder suspect escape from an Alabama jail in the United States of America, sparking a manhunt for the pair, has died, authorities said on Monday (May 9).
The officer, named as 56-year-old Vicky White, suffered an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound after they were caught by police, following a car chase.
She was taken to hospital and later died.
The 38-year-old inmate, Casey White surrendered in Indiana after the vehicle he and his accomplice were driving crashed following the pursuit.
Casey White – of no relation to his suspected accomplice – sustained minor injuries and was taken into custody.
He was already serving time for crimes dating back to 2015, including home invasion and carjacking and had previously been accused of a September 2020 stabbing death.
He will now also face an escape charge, authorities said.
Casey White was seen handcuffed and shackled in the custody of Vicky White leaving the jail in Muscle Shoals, Alabama in late April.
At the time, she was believed to be transporting him from the detention center to the courthouse for a mental evaluation.
Authorities realized the two had gone missing after the patrol car was found left in a shopping center parking lot.
Vicky White, a 17-year corrections veteran, was near retirement.
Sheriff Rick Singleton of Lauderdale County, Alabama, said her involvement came as a shock to her law enforcement colleagues.
“The lesson that I think I’ve learned and that I think everybody’s learned: you don’t know who you can trust. I had every bit of trust in Vicky White. She has been an exemplary employee. What in the world provoked her, prompted her, to pull a stunt like this, I don’t know. I don’t know if we’ll ever know.”
Singleton added that the escape had been well planned, adding that there was no evidence of outside assistance.
