Escaped inmates captured after car theft attempt

SHELBYVILLE — Two escaped inmates sought in the killings of two guards on a Georgia prison bus were captured Thursday after they were held at gunpoint by a rural Tennessee homeowner whose vehicle they were trying to steal, authorities said.

Donnie Rowe and Ricky Dubose were apprehended in the rural community of Christiana, Tenn., ending a multiple state manhunt that began early Tuesday.

“True bravery is what’s caused us to stand before you tonight to talk about a successful capture instead of a tragic incident,” Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Director Mark Gwyn said. “So I’m totally grateful to everyone involved.”

Earlier in the day, police in nearby Shelbyville had responded to a call about a home invasion in which a couple had been held captive, a Georgia Bureau of Investigation spokeswoman said.

The suspects fled in the couple’s vehicle and fired on sheriff’s deputies chasing them on Interstate 24 about 50 miles southeast of Nashville. Rutherford County Sheriff Michael Fitzhugh said his deputies did not return fire on the interstate.

Rowe and Dubose crashed the car and bailed out, running into the woods. They then came across a home with a car in the driveway.

The trooper said the homeowner looked outside and saw the two allegedly trying to steal his car. The man held the two at gunpoint.