ASHLAND – With help from Ashland County Sheriff’s Office, Ashland Police and the Ashland Post of Ohio Highway Patrol, Franklin County deputies on Thursday night captured two inmates who escaped from a Kentucky jail.
The inmates, Brandon Long, 32, and Paul Napier, 30, were on the run from Lewis County where they were serving time after being convicted on burglary charges, according to The Daily Independent in Ashland, Ky.
The two reportedly escaped through a side door of the jail around 3 p.m. Thursday.
Around 7:40 p.m. Franklin County deputies were alerted to keep an eye out for the men near Columbus. Deputies spotted the car near Morse Road and Karl Road around 8:45 p.m., according to 10TV.com.
With help from Ohio Highway Patrol, Franklin County Deputies pursued the men’s vehicle until it was stopped with spike strips on I-71 between Ohio 511 and Township Road 805, according to Ashland County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Carl Richert. The fleeing inmates then ran into a wooded area near Township Road 1504.
Ashland Police and Ashland County Sheriff’s deputies set up a perimeter and searched the woods.
Within 90 minutes, Richert said, both inmates were caught. A woman who was in the car with the men was also taken into custody, he said.
“The good thing is, nobody got hurt,” Richert said. “Lt. (Don) Simms did a great job coordinating, and our guys did a great job.”
Long and Napier are being held at the Franklin County Jail for extradition to Kentucky.
