EVANSVILLE, Ind. (WEHT/WHNT) – The manhunt has ended for an escaped Alabama inmate and wanted corrections officer, law enforcement officials announced Monday.
U.S. Marshals chased down Casey White, 38, and Vicky White, 56, in a vehicle in Evansville, Indiana, said Alabama officials. Casey was driving and Vicky was a passenger, Lauderdale County Sheriff Rick Singleton said. (While the two have the same last name, they are not related.)
Casey White was in custody and Vicky White was initially taken to the hospital for treatment, the sheriff said.
The Alabama sheriff did not elaborate on the extent of her injuries, but Indiana authorities told Nexstar’s WHNT she suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Vicky White died at an Evansville hospital Monday night, WHNT has learned. Her autopsy will be performed on Tuesday.
They were caught more than 200 miles from the Lauderdale County Detention Center.
Police say Vicky White drove to the Lauderdale County Detention Center in Florence, Alabama on April 29, telling colleagues she was taking inmate Casey White to the courthouse for a mental evaluation. When she did not answer her phone or return in the afternoon, authorities realized the pair had gone missing.
Authorities eventually learned that the evaluation was never scheduled and said it was just a charade to allow her to sneak the inmate out of the jail without suspicion. The discovery triggered a nationwide manhunt.
Casey White was awaiting trial in a capital murder case and Vicky White was assistant director of corrections for Lauderdale County.
“You just don’t know people sometimes,” Singleton said Monday. “You think you do and you really don’t know who they are.”
An emergency status conference is set for Casey White on Tuesday at the Lauderdale County Courthouse.
After the escape, police say they found the police cruiser used by Vicky White abandoned in an area near the detention center. An SUV purchased by Vicky White was later impounded in rural Tennessee.
Earlier in the day Monday, surveillance images were released of a man matching the description of Casey White, including a large tattoo on his right forearm, from a car wash in Evansville. U.S. Marshals said investigators were notified Sunday night that a 2006 Ford F-150 was discovered at the car wash.
The time stamp on the video appears to show May 3 as the date. No female is seen in the surveillance pictures provided by authorities, included below.
The car wash manager told WHNT that a woman who looked like Vicky White was also there, and that they abandoned one vehicle and got into another.
According to a release from U.S. Marshals, investigators determined the vehicle was used by Vicky White and Casey White.
Federal investigators believe they had been planning the escape for at least several months.
If you or someone you know is thinking of harming themselves, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline provides free support at 1-800-273-8255. Starting on July 16, 2022, U.S. residents can also be connected to the Lifeline by dialing 988. For more about risk factors and warning signs, visit the organization’s official website.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
