State inmate caught

NORTHPORT      -  An Alabama Department of Corrections work release inmate  housed in Hamilton and employed at Masonite in Haleyville escaped during the early morning hours Wednesday, July 19, and was apprehended the following day in the Northport area in a stolen vehicle with a loaded firearm.
Joseph Ray Perkins, 36, of Tuscaloosa County, reportedly escaped from his work detail at Masonite around 1:50 a.m. July 19, according to an escaped inmate report released by the Alabama Department of Corrections.
“They are pretty confident he was picked up in the parking lot, but by whom we don’t know,” stated Haleyville Police Chief Rodney Lewis.
The escaped inmate report was sent out at 6:58 a.m. July 19,  noting that Perkins, who is serving a 20-year sentence for a first degree theft of property conviction out of Tuscaloosa County, was incarcerated at Hamilton Community Based Facility/Community Work Center.
Perkins was working at his assigned job location at Masonite in Haleyville when he escaped, authorities said.
Perkins, who was considered armed and dangerous, was located around noon Thursday, July 20, when someone recognized him, according to Tuscaloosa County Sheriff Ron Abernathy.
This led to a pursuit with law enforcement, who were able to take him into custody without incident, authorities said.
According to a report issued by the ADOC, Perkins surrendered to law enforcement at 11:55 a.m. July 20, with agencies involved in his capture including the U.S. Marshals Task Force, Law Enforcement Services Division of the ADOC and K-9 unit, Northport Police Department and Tuscaloosa County