Ramone Alston, escaped murderer convicted of fatally shooting 1-year-old girl, has been caught

(KANNAPOLIS, N.C.) — Escaped murderer Ramone Alston, who escaped from custody Tuesday morning while being transported to a medical appointment at a North Carolina hospital, has been caught, authorities said.

Ramone Alston was captured shortly before 2 a.m. Friday morning at a hotel on Cloverleaf Parkway in Kannapolis, North Carolina, following an operation involving FBI Charlotte SWAT agents, Kannapolis Police and Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police, according to a statement from the North Carolina Department of Corrections.

Shortly after, Jacobia Crisp, a female acquaintance, was arrested in Alamance County and charged with felony aiding and abetting a fugitive, officials said.

Alston will be charged with felony escape from prison and is being taken to a high security unit in the state prison system where he will resume serving his life sentence for first degree murder and will await court appearances for his escape charges.

Alston was convicted of shooting and killing a 1-year-old girl on Christmas Day in 2015 and is serving a life sentence.

The infant victim, Maleah Williams, had been playing outside with her Christmas toys when she was struck by gunfire, her mother previously told Raleigh ABC station WTVD.

Alston, 30, broke away from a corrections officer while being escorted to UNC Hospital in Hillsborough on Tuesday, according to the North Carolina Department of Adult Correction.

“He had freed himself from leg restraints and, still in handcuffs, jumped out and ran into adjacent woods,” the department said in a statement.

Director of Orange County Emergency Services Kirby Saunders said state, local and federal law enforcement teams searched hundreds of acres for Alston, using aerial assets including helicopters, canine resources and ground searchers.

“He’s unpredictable — we don’t know what he’s going to do, so he should certainly probably be considered dangerous,” Keith Acree, a spokesperson for the Department of Adult Correction, said in a press briefing earlier this week. “People make rash decisions at a time like this; he’s already made one very large rash decision this morning.”

Alston was taken into custody without injuries to anyone.

“I am grateful to our DAC staff and thankful for the support and effort from hundreds of local, state and federal public safety officers who helped in the search and investigation that returned Alston safely to custody,” said Todd Ishee, Secretary of the North Carolina Department of Adult Correction. “This was an incredible collaborative effort of many people and agencies.”

ABC News’ Jason Volack and Julia Reinstein contributed to this report.

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