Secrecy surrounding the escape and capture of a convicted murderer who walked away from a northeast Arkansas prison work detail earlier this week raised new questions Thursday, and two state agencies planned "parallel" investigations.
Previous coverage of Jones' crimes
60 years, no parole for killer of girl, 16
Suspect led 2 to site of body, officers told
Lloyd Jones, who was serving a 60-year prison term for killing a 16-year-old girl in 2012, was captured Thursday afternoon, Arkansas Correction Department spokesman Solomon Graves said.
On Wednesday, Graves had said law enforcement officers and others were searching areas around the East Arkansas Regional Correctional Facility in the Lee County town of Brickeys, about 13 miles northeast of Marianna.
But after Jones, 40, was captured Thursday afternoon, Graves initially declined to say where the inmate was caught, whether he resisted arrest and whether he was armed. Jones also declined to describe Jones' physical condition at the time of capture.
However, the department released a statement just after 8 p.m. Thursday saying that Jones was captured at approximately 3:02 p.m. about 3 miles from the prison, and about 5 miles from his escape location.
The release said Jones in now being held at the maximum security unit in Tucker and that no information will be released on any potential charges he may face as a result of his escape.
In email interviews, the Correction Department and the Arkansas State Police confirmed investigations were either planned or already underway.
"There will be a parallel internal investigation [into] the factors contributing to the escape," Graves wrote.
State police spokesman Bill Sadler said special agents with the state police's Criminal Investigation Division "are conducting an investigation associated with the escape."
"Upon completion of the investigation, the case file will be turned over to the prosecuting attorney for consideration of charges," Sadler said.
Asked if he meant charges against Jones or others, Sadler replied, "The investigation will encompass the events leading up to the escape and in the days after."
Graves said earlier this week that Jones was neither handcuffed nor shackled while on the work detail about 2 miles from the prison but was supervised by at least one armed guard. Jones had a I-C classification, which under prison policy allowed him to leave the prison on work details provided he was accompanied by armed guards. Graves did not answer a question Thursday about how many guards were watching Jones before the escape.
Jones' classification was subsequently changed to a 4-C, the strictest, on the Correction Department's inmate-information website because of the escape, Graves said Wednesday.
Graves referred to his earlier statements regarding the Correction Department's policy related to the supervision of Class I-C inmates on work crews.
"Adherence to policy, or a lack thereof, will be determined in our internal investigation," Graves said Thursday.
An online Arkansas inmate handbook says in part, "Inmates are classified in three ways: custody classification, good time earning classification and medical classification.
"Custody classification is the result of scoring established criteria including crime, length of sentence, disciplinary record, prior violence, escape history and various other factors that determine risk to the public and risk within the institution. This classification may limit the facilities to which an inmate can be assigned," the handbook says.
Asked on Monday to explain Jones' I-C classification, Solomon replied in an email, "Class I is the highest classification/class status an inmate can obtain and has subcategories of IA, IB, IC, ID, and IP. Class IC is for inmates assigned Class I status (other than IA, IB, ID, or IP), but require armed security supervision when working outside the fence."
Jones, who lived near Lavaca in Sebastian County, pleaded guilty in August 2012 to first-degree murder in the death of Angela Allen of Van Buren. He also was convicted of abuse of a corpse and possession of material depicting sexually explicit conduct involving a child. Police said he killed the girl, stuffed her body in a barrel and buried her in Sebastian County.
He was sentenced to prison as a habitual offender, meaning he was ordered to serve the entire sentence. He had a previous rape conviction.
Gov. Asa Hutchinson, asked through spokesman J.R. Davis if he had any concerns about Jones' classification and whether such should be reviewed, did not answer that question but did praise those who worked to capture Jones.
State Desk on 06/17/2016