An Alabama inmate on the run for more than two days is back behind bars, but this time, in Martin County, Florida.
The Martin County Sheriff’s Office, Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Tactical Unit, and the FBI Violent Crimes Task Force captured the last of 12 fugitives who escaped from an Alabama jail on Sunday night.
Brady Kilpatrick, 24, was taken down by a law enforcement team at a home in the south end of the county just after 7 p.m. Tuesday.
Martin County Sheriff William Snyder said three other people at the home were also arrested, including Kilpatrick's sister, her fiance and a friend of the fiance. They are facing aiding and abetting charges.
Sheriff Snyder said his agency got information from the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office on Tuesday afternoon that Kilpatrick was in the southern part of the county. The arrest came just a couple hours later.
"We got a tip that brought us into that vicinity and additional information, investigative techniques we probably won't discuss tonight, but we finally were able to zero in on that particular house. Fortunately for us, there was actually a car there with Alabama tags, so everything pointed to that house," Snyder said.
Kilpatrick was the last of a dozen inmates to be captured, and the only one to make it out of the Walker County, Alabama area.
His mistake was coming to Martin County, Sheriff Snyder said.
"He told us he thought he was facing 20 years," Snyder said. "So when he got out and there were 11 others, he told us that he never stopped running. He actually ran for two hours and never got pinned down. He was the only one who got out. He just picked the wrong county to come and hide out in."
Snyder said Kilpatrick is being cooperative, admitted to being involved in gang activity, and said he told the driver to 'take him as far south as possible.'
According to reports from the Walker County Alabama Sheriff’s Office, the inmates took advantage of a new guard by using peanut butter to conceal an exit door number. When the inmates called for the guard to open the door and let them in a cell, the guard inadvertently opened the exit door allowing the inmates to escape.
The first 11 inmates were captured within 12-hours of the escape. Kilpatrick was the last fugitive on the loose.
Snyder said drugs were also found at the Tequesta home.
Neighbors said they saw local and federal agents with guns drawn closing in on the house. They also say a car with Alabama plates showed up at the home in the last day or so.
Sheriff James Underwood of Walker County, where Kilpatrick escaped, said, "Oh, it's a great feeling. I'm just very proud of all the help we've had here and also down in Florida. And our guys here worked very hard to get this information and it paid off for us.
Kilpatrick will eventually be extradited to Alabama. He has a first appearance scheduled for Wednesday in Martin County.
