A “dangerous” escapee on the loose for more than a month after escaping from the Candler County Jail was captured Wednesday night in Florida, police said.
    Robert Lee Williamson, 36, of Palm Bay, Fla., escaped less than a week after he was arrested in early August in the shooting of a Metter man.  On Aug. 7, he escaped through a hole in a shower wall in jail.
     The fugitive was captured in Port St. Lucie, Fla., late Wednesday night by the United States Marshals Service Florida/Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force, Metter Police Chief Dennis Nelson said.
     When he escaped, Williamson was being held on aggravated assault charges in the shooting of Mike Mosley several times in the torso July 25 in Metter.     
    Candler County Sheriff Homer Bell said Williamson escaped the jail by enlarging a hole in a shower wall. Williamson worked for the company that built the jail and was familiar with the layout of the building, Bell said.
    Williamson fled in the early morning, wearing an orange jumpsuit. Once outside the building, he used bolt cutters to escape the prison yard, according to reports. Bell would not comment further on the escape, except to confirm the use of the tool and to say the investigation is ongoing.
    “Williamson’s capture resulted from a very lengthy investigation by the Candler County Sheriff’s Office, Metter Police Department, United States Marshals Service Southeast Regional Fugitive Task Force – Savannah and United States Marshals Service Florida – Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force in Fort Pierce, Florida,” Nelson said.
    “Williamson was arrested after a foot chase, and he was found in possession of a firearm, ammunition and other dangerous items that would indicate he may have been planning to commit future crimes.”
    Williamson faces Florida charges of possession of a weapon by a convicted felon, grand theft of a firearm and resisting an officer without violence.
    “He was found with his sister, Christine Denise Emory, who was charged in Florida with harboring and aiding an escaped prisoner,” he said.
    Both are currently being held at the St. Lucie County Jail.
    “Working very closely with the Marshals Service and the Candler County Sheriff’s Office, we followed up on countless leads and on several occasions were only steps behind Williamson,” Nelson said.
    Bell was not immediately available for comment Thursday, and a jail staff member said he was out of state. He did not return messages left Thursday, but said in a released statement, “We would like to thank the citizens of Metter, Candler County and the surrounding area for furnishing us with numerous tips and information that eventually led to Williamson’s capture.”
    Anyone having any additional information on this case is asked to contact Investigator Justin Wells at (912) 685-2190 or jwells@metterpd.com or Candler County sheriff’s Investigator Melvin Ivey at (912) 685-2568.
    
    Holli Deal Bragg may be reached at (912) 489-9414.