Killers caught at last

Escapees busted – by a gun-toting local

Two escaped inmates sought in the killings of two guards on a Georgia prison bus were recaptured after a homeowner in rural Tennessee held them at gunpoint until help arrived.

Donnie Rowe (left) and Ricky Dubose (right), both on the run since early Tuesday, turned up Thursday in Shelbyville, where they invaded a home and held a couple hostage for hours before leading cops on a car chase.

The hostages “are lucky they’re alive,” Bedford County Sheriff Austin Swing said, recounting how the fugitives had tied the man and woman up.

The men left in the couple’s Jeep SUV at about 5 p.m. the same day after stealing valuables and eating a stew the woman was preparing, according to Swing. They threatened to return if the couple identified them. Still, the man called police.

“We need help out here quick . . . hurry!” he said before he was heard telling his sobbing wife, “It’s all right . . . Come here and let me hold you.”

Spotted by deputies, the fugitives led them on a 20-mile high-speed chase on Interstate 24, firing shots and striking several cruisers, authorities said.

The chase ended with a crash near Christiana. The two ran to a home, where they tried to steal a car, according to authorities.

But “the homeowner stepped out and held the people there by gunpoint,” Highway Patrol spokesman Lt. Bill Miller said. Deputies then arrived. Rowe, 43, and Dubose, 24, both serving time for armed robbery and other crimes, had escaped after allegedly overpowering Sgts. Christopher Monica and Curtis Billue on a prison bus and shooting them dead. They then carjacked a motorist and drove off.