ASHLAND (AP) -- Workers at a small Ohio store say an escaped prison inmate asked to use the phone and bought an iced tea at a counter where his mugshot was displayed before a customer tackled him.
They say James David Myers was tied up with rope off the shelf until authorities arrived at the Olivesburg General Store in Ashland on Thursday night, less than 24 hours after Myers was found to be missing from a prison about eight miles away in Mansfield.
The store owner says the 47-year-old was wearing a white T-shirt and dark pants and used change from his pocket to try to cover his picture on the counter. Employees later noticed he'd been carrying a coat labeled with the prison's abbreviation.
Authorities have refused to discuss how Myers escaped.
Earlier coverage:
CAPTURED: Escaped Mansfield Inmate
MANSFIELD -- Officials at the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction have confirmed inmate James Myers has been apprehended in Mansfield by the Ohio State Highway Patrol at 6:42 p.m. without incident.
Myers escaped from the Mansfield Correctional Institution on Wednesday. He has now been returned to the prison and criminal and administrative investigations are ongoing.
DRC would like to thank the Ohio State Highway Patrol, Richland County Sheriffâs Office, Mansfield Police Department, US Marshals Northeast Ohio Fugitive Task Force and the Akron Police Department for the coordinated assistance provided in apprehending inmate Myers, and members of public who provided information throughout the course of the incident.
They say James David Myers was tied up with rope off the shelf until authorities arrived at the Olivesburg General Store in Ashland on Thursday night, less than 24 hours after Myers was found to be missing from a prison about eight miles away in Mansfield.
The store owner says the 47-year-old was wearing a white T-shirt and dark pants and used change from his pocket to try to cover his picture on the counter. Employees later noticed he'd been carrying a coat labeled with the prison's abbreviation.
Authorities have refused to discuss how Myers escaped.
Earlier coverage:
CAPTURED: Escaped Mansfield Inmate
MANSFIELD -- Officials at the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction have confirmed inmate James Myers has been apprehended in Mansfield by the Ohio State Highway Patrol at 6:42 p.m. without incident.
Myers escaped from the Mansfield Correctional Institution on Wednesday. He has now been returned to the prison and criminal and administrative investigations are ongoing.
DRC would like to thank the Ohio State Highway Patrol, Richland County Sheriffâs Office, Mansfield Police Department, US Marshals Northeast Ohio Fugitive Task Force and the Akron Police Department for the coordinated assistance provided in apprehending inmate Myers, and members of public who provided information throughout the course of the incident.