Two Tennessee prisoners who escaped jail through an air vent killed in car chase

Police offered a reward of $7,500 for information on Tobias Wayne Carr, 38, who is accused of murdering his wife in 2019

Tobias Wayne Carr, 38, who was charged with murdering his wife in Tennessee in 2019 (Sullivan County Sheriffs’ Office)

Two prisoners who escaped from a county jail in Tennessee through an air vent last week have been killed in an alleged police chase.

Sheriffs in Sullivan county, Tennessee said on Monday that Tobias Wayne Carr, 38, and Timothy Allen Sarver, 45, had been killed in Wilmington, North Carolina, nearly 300 miles from where they had been held after robbing a convenience store.

The two men allegedly broke out of jail on Friday alongside Johnny Shane Brown, 50, by climbing through the air conditioning system onto the roof of their cell. Sheriffs said Mr Brown is still at large.

The Sullivan County Sheriff’s Office said on Saturday that they suspected the trio to be near Pulaski, Virginia, with authorities offering a total reward of $7,500 (£5,542) for any information leading to the arrest of each of the the men.

But on Monday, the Sheriff’s Office said it had been told that Mr Carr and Mr Sarver were killed after “a multi-jurisdictional pursuit” that led to their vehicle being disabled.

Mr Carr was charged with murdering his wife and tampering with evidence in Kingsport, Tennessee in 2019, with police saying he had stabbed his wife multiple times and cut her throat in the couple’s mobile home. He is described as 5 ft 11, weighing 160 lbs, with blue eyes and brown hair.

His escape prompted an an emergency bulletin from sheriffs on Friday, putting all local schools and the Sullivan County Public Library on lockdown.

“Obviously, security measures failed and we are investigating to see exactly what occurred,” said Captain Andy Seabolt. “Our goal at this point is to locate these individuals and bring them back to jail.”

Johnny Shane Brown, left, and Timothy Allen Sarver, right (Sullivan County Sheriff’s Office)

The next day, the Sheriff’s Office said it believed the three inmates might be in a white 2001 Chevrolet Silverado truck with a Tennessee licence plate reading 830GSD.

Mr Sarver was charged with car theft, identity theft, illegally carrying a weapon, and possession of drug paraphernalia, and is described as 6ft 2, weighing 235 lbs, with green eyes and strawberry blonde hair.

Mr Brown was charged with domestic assault, aggravated stalking, harassment, breaking a protection order and other offences, and is described as 5 ft 11, weighing 200 lbs, with brown eyes and grey hair.

Sheriffs asked anyone with information about any of the men to call 1-800-824-3463.