FAYETTE COUNTY, Ohio — A 39-year-old Pike County man, currently behind bars in the Fayette County Jail, is facing additional charges after a daring escape attempt during transport. Jimmy L. Mills, charged with felonious assault on a law enforcement officer and aggravated robbery, after he tried to escape from custody along route 35.
Sheriff Vernon Stanforth of the Fayette County told media on Tuesday that at approximately 5:17 am, deputies responded to US 35 West around mile marker 87 following a distress call from a Pike County deputy. Upon arrival, Fayette County deputies found a Pike County Sheriff’s Deputy was transporting Mills from the Fayette County Jail — where Pike County contracts to house inmates. Mills had assaulted the Pike County deputy and tried to escape.
Stanforth said Mills managed to dismantle a portion of the transport cage in the Sheriff’s prisoner van, attempting to use it as a tool for escape. The Pike County deputy, realizing the threat, stopped the van in an effort to prevent the escape. In an ensuing struggle, Mills assaulted the deputy with the metal partition, exited the secured van, and attempted to steal the transport van.
The Pike County deputy reported that Mills, during the altercation, tried to seize the deputy’s firearm from its holster before fleeing on foot into a nearby field. Law enforcement personnel later apprehended Mills in the field, bringing him back into custody.
The Pike County deputy, injured during the incident, was transported by Fayette County EMS for medical treatment. Mills now faces additional charges on top of the existing felony charges. He remains incarcerated in the Fayette County Jail.