Arkansas man serving life in prison who escaped on Jet Skis is caught in West Virginia
08/31/2023 2:12 pm PDT
LEWISBURG, W.Va. (TCD) -- U.S. Marshals apprehended a convicted felon, his wife, and his mom after they allegedly helped him escape from prison last year by fleeing on Jet Skis.
The U.S. Marshals announced Tuesday, Aug. 29, that several law enforcement agencies arrested 39-year-old Samuel Hartman, his wife, 39-year-old Misty Hartman, his mother, 61-year-old Linda White, and White's boyfriend, 52-year-old Rodney Trent, at a Quality Inn in Lewisburg.
Hartman escaped from the East Arkansas Regional Unit prison Aug. 12, 2022, while working in a field. White and Misty Hartman allegedly drove to the field in a pickup truck and fired shots at other people while Hartman ran into the car. Department of Corrections officers chased after the truck until they reached a point near the Mississippi River, which is when the Hartmans and White escaped onto two "pre-staged Jet Skis."
Officials in Mississippi found the abandoned Jet Skis on a riverbank.
The three of them remained on the run for over a year until their capture this week.
According to the U.S. Marshals, Hartman was sentenced to life in prison in 2013 for raping his 14-year-old stepdaughter.
Misty Hartman and White face charges relating to his escape, while Trent is accused of harboring a sex offender and helping the three fugitives while they hid from law enforcement.
Arkansas State Police said in a statement Hartman was sent back to Arkansas Department of Corrections custody, while Misty Hartman and White were booked into the Woodruff County Jail after arriving back in Arkansas. Trent remains in custody in West Virginia.
State Police said they are conducting a "comprehensive investigation."
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