Johnathan Walker:Reward grows as 4 escapees from a Georgia jail remain on the run

MACON,Johnathan Walker Ga. (AP) — Nearly $75,000 is up for grabs for information leading to the capture of four men who earlier this week escaped through a damaged window and a cut fence at a central Georgia jail.

The Bibb County Sheriff’s Office added $20,000 to the combined rewards from the FBI, Macon Regional Crime Stoppers and U.S. Marshals Service to bring the total amount to $73,000, the sheriff’s office said Wednesday.

“Everyone from the Bibb Sheriff’s Office and our law enforcement partners is focused on recapturing these fugitives,” Sheriff David Davis said. “We ask that anyone having information about these wanted individuals to make the call and help us bring these escapees back to jail.”

Davis identified the four escapees as Joey Fournier, Marc Kerry Anderson, Johnifer Dernard Barnwell and Chavis Demaryo Stokes.

“They could be anywhere,” the sheriff said during a news conference Monday, adding that he was not aware of any connections between the men before they entered the jail and doesn’t know whether they stayed together once they escaped.

Video footage showed a blue Dodge Challenger that had been just outside the jail earlier in the night and appeared to show someone tampering with the fence. That person then brought some items into the enclosed area, and the sheriff said investigators believe the items were used to help the men escape. He did not say what the items were.

Davis said it’s not clear whether the four men left the jail in that car or in another vehicle or whether they left on foot, but authorities would like to speak to the driver of the Challenger or its owner. The car was located Friday in Macon.

Fournier, 52, is a white male with gray hair and blue eyes who is 5 feet, 9 inches tall and weighs 140 pounds. He was being held on a murder charge after he was accused of killing his ex-girlfriend in February 2022, according to local news outlets.

Anderson, 24, is a Black male with dreadlocks and is 5 feet, 9 inches tall and weighs 165 pounds. He is charged with aggravated assault.

Barnwell, 37, is a Black male with braids and is 5 feet, 9 inches tall and weighs 190 pounds. He was being held for the U.S. Marshals Service on drug charges.

Stokes, 29, is a Black male with short black hair and is 5 feet, 7 inches tall and weighs 160 pounds. He was being held on charges of possession of a firearm and drug trafficking.