An inmate from the Toombs County Detention Center had a brief taste of freedom Sunday afternoon when he escaped from work detail at the jail.
Toombs County Sheriff Alvie “Junior” Kight said that around 1:30, Dewey Vincent Hester, age 46, fled on foot and headed toward Bulldog Road where he entered a wooded area. The Sheriff said deputies and officers quickly set up a perimeter where he was last seen, and an hour later, the Georgia Department of Corrections K-9 Unit tracked Hester in the same area and he was taken back into custody.
Sheriff Kight said Hester was being held at the Detention Center without bond on theft-related charges. He was not considered dangerous or a violent criminal, but he is now facing a new felony charge of escape.
In addition to the Sheriff’s Office and DOC 9-K Unit, assistance was provided by the Lyons Police Department and the Georgia State Patrol.