OOPS! MY BAD!... Those weren't TDC busses that got a flat tire and then two prisoners escape. According to sources, those busses were from a prison in neighboring Louisiana. My apologies to the Texas Department of Corrections. -- Willie P. Openshaw, Editor, PolkCountyToday.com
The follwoing is a press release from the Polk County Sheriff's Office:
On October 28, 2022, at approximately 1:20 PM, two contract prisoner buses from Houston, were transporting inmates to a correctional facility in Louisiana. While traveling through a rural area of Polk County, one of the buses became disabled, on State Hwy 190 E, near FM 1276.
Both buses stopped to repair the tire and sometime during the stop, two inmates escaped from the bus and fled into a wooded area, where officers were able to quickly locate and apprehend the two inmates. Prior to escaping, one of the inmates was able to grab an unsecured firearm from the front of the bus. Officers subsequently located the firearm in the wood line. No one was injured in this incident.
Both inmates were transported to the Polk County Jail and charged with felony Escape. This incident is still under investigation and additional charges are pending at this time.
The Polk County Sheriff’s Office would like to thank our local citizens who called in with tips and a special thank you to our local Texas DPS units and officers from the Alabama-Coushatta Police Department, for their assistance in bringing this incident to a safe and successful conclusion.
{end of press release}
ORIGINAL STORY BELOW
Prison busses on the side of 190 East just east of FM-1276 early Friday afternoon.
2 Prisoners Escape from Transport Bus, CAMP RUBY, October 28, 2022 - Shortly after 1 pm on October 28, 2022, two Texas Department of Correction (TDC) transport busses with prisoners were east-bound on US-190 East. One of the busses (the lead bus) blew a tire. Both busses pulled to the right shoulder (just east of FM-1276). A repair man (Marty Robinson) from Galloway Exxon in Livingston was summoned to fix the tire. Robinson showed up, began working on the flat tire, and during that time, SOMETHING went wrong. IT SEEMS LIKE SOMEBODY messed up. For WHATEVER REASON, two of the prisoners managed to escape (1 black male, and 1 white male) AND reportedly managed to escape with the guard's gun (according to sources) into the adjoining woods. Sheriff Byron Lyons, Chief Deputy, Ricky Childers, multiple deputies and detectives from the Polk County Sheriff's Office, State Troopers and other law enforcement converged on the area. A short time later, both prisoners were recaptured and there were no injuries. Both men were wearing orange jump suits.
That's all the information that we have at this time. We'll update this story if and when we get more info.
Nicholas Cordell Graham, 30, of Houston: Escape while arrested confined-felony, deadly conduct, unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon
Braxton James Grant, 19, of Conroe: Escape while arrested confined-felony
Polk County Sheriff, Byron Lyons (left) and multiple deputies converged on the scene with other law enforcement agencies. The prisoners were recaptured fairly quickly.
Mixi, Molly, Hedi, and Katy were on duty for PolkCountyToday.com.
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