MACON, Ga. — A raid at an apartment home on Vineville Avenue Monday morning led to the arrest of one person and the death of another. The Bibb County Sheriff's Office believes both people helped four inmates escape the Bibb County jail over a week ago.
While the four inmates — Joey Fournier, Marc Anderson, Johnifer Barnwell and Chavis Stokes — are all still on the run, the Bibb County Sheriff's Office has made some progress in the investigation this week.
To help you keep things straight, we're breaking down the people authorities believe were connected to the inmates' escape from the Bibb County Law Enforcement Center.
Mykia Williams:
Mykia Williams was the first person to be arrested for helping inmates escape from the Bibb County jail.
On Monday morning, Mykia was arrested for "knowingly and willingly" aiding and abetting the four inmates' escape from custody, according to her arrest warrant.
Mykia lived in the apartment that was raided by U.S. Marshals on Monday morning, her jail records show.
The Bibb County Sheriff's Office is not releasing further details about what role Mykia had in the case. But she was denied bail, jail records show.
Christian Williams:
Christian Williams was found in the apartment with Mykia, his girlfriend. Christian was the 23-year-old murder suspect who was allegedly kidnapped on March 6 only hours before he was set to stand trial in the death of Greg Watkins.
He was accused of shooting Watkins multiple times at the Quick Serve convenience store at 584 Emery Highway in April 2021.
Christian shot himself during the raid at the Vineville apartment homes. At around 11:30 a.m. Tuesday morning, he died of his injuries, according to the Bibb County Sheriff's Office.
Because he was in the hospital, he was not arrested in connection to the escape. In another press release from the sheriff's office, they say it is still unclear how Christian fits into the escape and they are investigating his involvement.
Jakaylen Billy Ray Williams:
On Tuesday, we learned Jakaylen Billy Ray Williams was arrested and charged for allegedly playing a role in the escape.
On top of facing felony charges of aiding or permitting another to escape lawful custody, he also faces theft charges.
According to an arrest warrant, Jakaylen is accused of possessing the Dodge Challenge which had been stolen from the Enterprise Rent-a-Car on Oct. 9. Photos of the vehicle were distributed by the sheriff's office on the day of the escape.
At the time, they said they were just looking to question the owner of the vehicle because it was in the parking lot of the jail around when the escape happened.
While it is unclear if Jakaylen stole the car himself, another arrest warrant said he aided in the escape at 3:30 a.m. on Oct. 16 — the Monday morning when the four inmates are believed to have escaped from the jail.
In a press release from the Bibb County Sheriff's Office, they called him the "driver" of the blue Dodge Challenger, and they said he possessed the vehicle when it was recovered.
The sheriff's office says they are still investigating whether the inmates who escaped were taken away from the Bibb County jail in the Dodge Challenger.
In unrelated charges, he also faces battery family violence charges and aggravated assault charges from August, jail records show. He is being held in Monroe County.
While the sheriff's office did confirm yesterday that Mykia and Christian were in a relationship, they would not provide any information about whether Jakaylen also had any relationship with either Christian or Mykia.
Catch up on the Bibb County jailbreak in 10 minutes:
How the escape happened:
On the Monday of the escape, Bibb County Sheriff David Davis held a press conference to explain the course of events.
He told reporters the inmates made their way into a dayroom in the jail where they escaped through a broken window. Davis also noted this happened in the oldest section of the jail.
Sources previously told 13WMAZ that the blue Dodge Challenger brought tools to the jail grounds, which were then used during the escape.
Davis also noted this happened in the oldest section of the jail.
“We have a 43-year-old jail. This happened in the oldest part of the jail… the most rundown part of the jail,” Davis said. “I’ve been talking about how we need a new jail, we need a new jail – and we have a jail that is falling down on us, that is breaking down.”
Davis told reporters they believe the escape happened at around 3:30 a.m. on Monday. They did not realize someone had escaped until 6 a.m., when deputies found the hole in the fence.
According to Davis, there were fewer than 10 guards on duty at the time, and sources tell us there were only three deputies in charge of the 800 inmates in the jail.
During the press conference, he said it takes 30 guards to fill every position, but they haven't had that level of staffing in quite some time.
At around 10:30 a.m., school officials say they were notified about the inmate escape and then at around 11:30 a.m., the sheriff's office sent out a press release notifying the media about the escape.
During that time, Davis said deputies were out and already looking for the missing inmates.
There is a $73,000 reward for anyone who provides information that leads to the arrest of all four inmates.
If you have any information, you can contact the Macon Regional Crime Stoppers at 1-877-68CRIME.
There are also two hotlines with the Bibb County Sheriff’s Office 478-310-4485 and 478-310-4502.
You can watch Sheriff David Davis' full press conference here: