2 fired after 3 Scotland County inmates escape on Monday, sheriff’s office says

LAURINBURG, N.C. (WBTW) — Two Scotland County Detention Center employees have been fired after three inmates escaped from the jail early Monday, the sheriff office said.

Capt. Kim Foy and a shift sergeant were fired by Sheriff Ralph Kersey after authorities said the inmates kicked out a window and escaped. The escape happened shortly before dawn, and a sheriff’s office spokesman confirmed Tuesday that the jail remained on lockdown.

The basis for the firings was not immediately known. News13 has asked the sheriff’s office for the name of the shift sergeant who was fired.

One of the prisoners, James Ronnie Tyler II, 32, was found hiding in a car near the jail and now faces an escape charge. The two others, Phillip John Graham, 35, and Dedrick Lamar Williams, 33, remained at large Tuesday afternoon.

Graham was being held on sex and assault charges, while Williams was in jail on robbery and assault charges. The North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Marshals are involved in the search for both men, the sheriff’s office said.

Anyone with information is asked to call the sheriff’s office at 910-276-3385.

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Dennis Bright is the Digital Executive Producer at News13 . He joined the team in May 2021. Dennis is a West Virginia native and a graduate of Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia. Follow Dennis on, Facebook , X, formerly Twitter , and read more of his work here .

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