Dougherty County and Arkansas law enforcement are working to see if a truck found in Dougherty County is connected to a man who escaped police custody
ALBANY, GA -- Updated Thursday, Sept. 15 at 7:07 p.m.
Dougherty County police say the Buick SUV that was reported stolen by a Dougherty County resident was found in Oviedo, Florida, in Seminole County off of State Route 417. The vehicle was recovered by Florida Highway Patrol.
Original StoryA 1999 Chevrolet pickup truck found in Dougherty County could be connected to an Arkansas man who escaped from a police vehicle.
"When the officers ran the information on the truck, they were notified that it had been stolen the day before in Sebastian County, Arkansas," says Capt. Jimmy Sexton with the Dougherty County Police Department.
The Sebastian County Sheriff’s Office in Fort Smith, Arkansas, says they believe it is connected to John Michael Silvey, 23, who recently escaped from a police car.
Sexton says Terrell County law enforcement was chasing the truck but called DCP when the driver crossed into Dougherty County lines.
The car was later found in the woods off of Birchwood Drive near Forrester Road, according to Sexton. The Sebastian County Sheriff's Office says they it is "not absolute" that the truck is connected to Silvey's escape, but Sexton says Terrell County officers' description of the pickup's driver resembles Silvey.
Sexton says around the same time DCP was looking for the driver of the pickup, a report regarding a stolen burgundy 2004 Buick SUV was reported at a residence approximately half of a mile away from where they found the abandoned pickup truck. The keys had been left in the Buick, which Sexton says is not uncommon in rural areas but should be a lesson to the public to not leave keys in unattended cars.
Monday morning, Sexton says DCP received information that they are following that could lead them to Silvey.
"A financial transaction card -- we don't know if it was a credit card or debit card -- that was in the Buick SUV was used in Tampa, Florida," says Sexton.
DCP is now working on processing the stolen pickup and working with the Sebastian County Sheriff’s Office and Tampa law enforcement to find Silvey.
Sexton says if and when he is found, Silvey faces motor vehicle theft charges in Dougherty County.
FOX 31 has not been able to find out what Silvey was arrested for recently, but did find court documents stating Silvey pled guilty in March 2007 for sexual indecency with a child and is a registered sex offender.
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