Georgia Inmates Allegedly Escaped Jail, Kidnapped a Lyft Driver — and the Rest Sounds Like a Movie

Louisiana was home to two brazen prison escapes last year. First, a historic manhunt for 10 inmates who mocked guards with “To Easy” graffiti after fleeing a New Orleans jail in May; then, just seven months later, a second breakout northwest of the city where inmates allegedly scaled walls to breakout using bedsheets.

Now, inmates are still managing to break out from behind bars in the South, but these new escaped inmates allegedly used an unconventional method to secure a getaway driver.

Inmates Stevenson Charles, 24, Noad Yohannes, 31, and Yusuf Minor, 31, reportedly escaped from the DeKalb County Jail on Dec. 21. DeKalb County Chief Deputy Temetris Atkins alleged the inmates exploited the more than 30-year-old jail’s aging infrastructure to flee, damaging part of a jail cell. He wouldn’t go into detail about how the escape occurred citing security concerns, but he told CBS News repairs have already been made and additional safeguards are being evaluated.

But the discovery didn’t come until the next day’s routine check, giving Charles, Yohannes and Minor an entire night to put distance between themselves and the jail before a single siren was even sounded. Authorities alleged the trio was whisked away from the jail by Christopher Thompson, who allegedly dropped them off at Minor’s girlfriend’s home, 11 Alive reported.

It was there the inmates allegedly ordered a Lyft ride using a fake, female name. Minor’s girlfriend allegedly helped call the Lyft, prosecutors claimed according to NBC News. Upon arrival to the requested destination, the Lyft driver unlocked the car for the three men to exit, the complaint alleged. However, one of the men allegedly wrapped a rope around her neck from behind.

Her hands were allegedly bound and she was dragged to the backseat of the car, where she was demanded to keep her eyes closed and head down. And if she didn’t, she was allegedly threatened with “being shot, raped, and tortured,” an FBI agent claimed in an affidavit.

The “very traumatized” Lyft driver alleged to authorities the trio kidnapped her for six to 10 hours as they tried to gain access to her phone and online banking. Prosecutors also accuse the inmates of using the driver’s credit cards to rent a short-term rental property in Miramar, Florida, about 25 miles north of Miami. 

Thanks to license plate readers, the driver’s stolen vehicle was detected by authorities in South Florida. Charles’ and Yohannes’ were arrested and Minor was arrested shortly afterward at the short-term rental. The driver was also rescued at the rental, per news station CNY Central.

All three inmates were charged with kidnapping as well as the escape, according to criminal complaints.

Charles was already behind bars after he allegedly met a man on the gay dating app Grindr, pulled a gun on him when they met in person in Miami and drove him to various banks to withdraw money from his accounts, CBS News reported. He was sentenced to life in prison after pleading guilty to multiple counts of kidnapping and bank robbery, and was turned over to DeKalb County on Dec. 5 to face murder charges.

Yohannes was charged with simple assault, arson and unlawful acts of violence in a penal institution and Minor faced two counts of armed robbery and two counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, court records showed.

A Lyft spokesperson told the outlet how they are “relieved that the driver is safe,” and added, “Our hearts are with the driver and we have reached out to offer support. Lyft is working closely with law enforcement to assist in any way we can as the investigation continues.”