UPDATE: Escaped inmates captured

UPDATE:  Jan. 27 11:30 a.m.

An escape plan hatched by two prisoners in the Northeast Correctional Center Carter County Annex now has them heading to a maximum security prison in Nashville.    

It all began around 6:30 p.m. Yesterday when Robert Wayne Jennings and Troy Layne crawling under a fence and escaped from the carter county annex in Roan Mountain.

Jennings, 38, started a 29 year prison term in 1994 for robbery and burglary convictions.  Layne, 40, began a 15 year prison term in 2007 for aggravated assault and evading arrest.

Prison guards, k-9 officers, troopers with the Tennessee Highway Patrol  and Carter County deputies were called in.  Carter County sheriff Chris Mathes says one of his deputies may have narrowly missed the suspect’s getaway car.

Deputy Larry Vaughn was working a traffic stop and a car matching the description of a vehicle seen near the annex during the escape swerved and hit Vaughn’s arm.  He was not seriously injured.

Corrections spokeswoman Dorinda Carter confirmed Jennings and Layne were captured in Newport, Tenn. around 12:30 a.m.

Both men were considered "short-timers."  Layne had a parole hearing scheduled in November.  Jennings was scheduled to be released in December.

Both now face escape charges, meaning that could add as much as five additional years to their sentences.

-----

UPDATE: 10:44 p.m.

Here's the most complete news release from the TN Dept. of Corrections.

"Roan Mountain, TN—The TDOC Office of Investigations is searching for two minimum-custody inmates who escaped from the Carter County Annex in Roan Mountain Thursday evening.  Inmates Robert Wayne Jennings, 38, and Troy Layne, 40, escaped on foot from the minimum-security facility around 6:30p.m Thursday.  The TDOC, local law enforcement and K-9 units immediately began searching for the pair and the search continues.

Inmate Jennings is serving a 29-year sentence for robbery and burglary convictions out of Blount County. His sentence was due to expire on December 26, 2012.

Inmate Layne is serving a 15-year sentence for aggravated assault and evading arrest convictions out of Sequatchie County. He would have been parole eligible as early as November, 2012.

When captured, both men will be charged with escape and could face an additional five years added to their sentences.

Jennings is a male white, 6”2, 155 pounds with red hair and brown eyes.

Layne is a male white, 5”10, 168 pounds with brown hair and blue eyes.

Anyone with information on the whereabouts of these escapees should contact the Tennessee Department of Correction Law Enforcement Unit at 615.741.7144 or their local law enforcement agency."

-----

UPDATE:  10:09 p.m.

11Connects just got this statement from TDOC spokesperson Dorinda Carter to our question: should the inmates be considered a danger to the public?

"We don't know if they are armed but anytime an inmate leaves a secure facility, they can potentially be dangerous. We wouldn't want anyone other than a law enforcement officer to attempt to apprehend them. They are minimum-security inmates."

-----

UPDATE:  9:53 p.m.

Carter County Sheriff Chris Mathes just told 11 Connects Officer Larry Vaughn may have had a close call with the escapees at a traffic stop earlier tonight.  He said a car matching the description of a possible getaway vehicle swerved to hit Officer Vaughn, glanced his hand and arm, and kept going.   Vaughn wasn't seriously hurt, Mathes said.

-----

UPDATE:  7:49 p.m.

11 Connects just got this information from Dorinda Carter, spokesperson for the Tennessee Department of Corrections.

"The escapees are Robert Wayne Jennings, 38, serving 29-year sentence for robbery and burglary convictions out of Blount County. Sentence would have expired on 12.26.2012. He’s been in since 1994. Male white, 6”2, 155 pounds

Troy Layne, 40, serving 15 years for aggravated assault and evading arrest out of Sequatchie County. Male white, 5”10, 168 pounds brown hair and blue eyes. He was sentenced in 2007. Was due to have a parole hearing in November 2012.

Both will be charged with escape upon capture. They escaped on foot from the Carter County Annex. Both were minimum custody inmates.                                                                             

Anyone with information should call local law enforcement or TDOC Office of Investigation at 615.741.7144."

Also, Carter County Sheriff Chris Mathes said the inmates may have been driving a car that hit a Sheriff's deputy who was conducting a traffic stop outside the Carter County Work Camp after the escape.  The car hit the deputy's hand, and he wasn't seriously hurt, Mathes said.  As a result, there may be damage to the passenger's side mirror, according to police radio transmissions.

---------------

Here's the earlier report:

A search is underway for two inmates who escaped tonight from the Carter County Work Camp in Roan Mountain, Tennessee.

Carter County Sheriff Chris Mathes confirmed the inmate crawled under a fence at the facility on Railroad Grade Road in Roan Mountain. Mathes said a witness saw a silver car in the area.

Crews are looking for a silver Ford Taurus with a North Carolina license plate.

Neither the exact time of the escapes nor the names of the inmates have been released.

A spokesperson for the Department of Corrections said local law enforcement agencies are assisting in the search.