Donnie Rowe (left) and Ricky Dubose moments after their capture in Tennessee. (photo/WKRN-TV News 2)
The search is over. The escapees wanted for shooting two Georgia prison guards have been caught.
Ricky Dubose, 24, and Donnie Rowe, 43, were taken into custody after a car and foot chase in Rutherford County, Tennessee on Thursday.
The chase began after authorities spotted a vehicle reported stolen during a home invasion in neighboring Bedford County, TN.
Rutherford County Sheriff Mike Fitzhugh says Bedford authorities had just issued a lookout when “within two minutes” one of his deputies spotted the vehicle.
“When the deputies attempted to stop the car, the car fled onto Interstate 24,” Fitzhugh is quoted as saying in a post on his office’s Facebook page. “During the attempt to stop them, our deputies were shot at by the suspect, damaging two RCSO vehicles. No one was injured or hit. We are very fortunate.”
Authorities say the chase lasted about 10 miles and reached speeds around 100 mph. It ended when Dubose and Rowe crashed and fled on foot.
The two then reportedly attempted to steal another vehicle outside a rural home. When the homeowner saw what was happening, officials say he called a neighbor and the two held the fugitives at gunpoint until deputies arrived and arrested them.
Fitzhugh says the work of the residents was fantastic. “Our deputies did an outstanding job in pursuing and apprehending them,” he adds.
Our Agent snapped this picture of Ricky Dubose and Donnie Rowe just after their capture in Rutherford County, TN tonight. Great work by all! pic.twitter.com/p2Y30ol9Ut
— TBI (@TBInvestigation) June 16, 2017
“Rest assured, justice will be served.” ~ GA Gov. Nathan Deal
News of capture met with elation and relief
“I’m happy. I’m elated, but I’m still tremendously sad about these (deceased) officers,” says Putnam County, Georgia, Sheriff Howard Sills. It was in Putnam where authorities say the two inmates escaped Tuesday after overpowering and killing the guards on a prison transport bus.
Authorities say after the murders the escapees carjacked a driver and drove the stolen car to Madison, Georgia where they burglarized a home and stole a pickup truck.
Sills says Dubose and Rowe ditched the truck about 260 miles away in Moore County, TN. There they apparently stole a car and drove to a house in Bedford County where they held an elderly couple hostage for about three hours before stealing their vehicle.
It was that vehicle law enforcement spotted and chased onto I-24.
Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal issued a statement hailing the fugitives’ capture. “Rest assured, justice will be served,” he said. “My sincere thanks to our local, state and federal law enforcement officers who assisted in the manhunt. Because of their tireless efforts, the public is safe.”
Of murdered correctional officers Christopher Monica and Curtis Billue, Deal said, “We will do everything in our power to support their loved ones, and we will not forget their sacrifice and service.”
Escapee has northeast Georgia ties
Authorities say Sgt. Monica and Sgt. Billue were shot and killed with their own weapons after the inmates overpowered them. Surveillance video of the shooting was recovered. Sills said it was unclear which of the inmates fired the fatal shots.
Dubose has ties to northeast Georgia. He’s from Madison County near Athens. He was in prison serving a 20 year sentence for aggravated assault, armed robbery, and other charges in a 2014 case out of Elbert County.
Rowe, who is from Lewisburg, Tennessee, was serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole for aggravated assault and armed robbery.
Mourning the loss
The murders of Monica and Billue were met with shock and sadness. The two were memorialized during an impromptu vigil outside the Georgia Department of Corrections headquarters in Forsyth Tuesday. On Wednesday, people lined the streets as their bodies were escorted from GBI headquarters in Decatur.
Billue was 58 years old. He would have marked his tenth year with the Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC) next month. He is survived by his father, two sons and siblings. The 42-year-old Monica had worked with GDC since October 2009. He leaves behind his wife.
Gov. Deal has ordered flags to be flown at half-staff in honor of the slain officers on the days that they’re buried. Flags will be lowered in honor of Sgt. Billue on June 17 and on June 20 for Sgt. Monica.
This story has been updated to include details of the arrest as reported by Rutherford County authorities
