A predawn escape from a suburban Atlanta jail set off a fast-moving, multistate pursuit that ended nearly 700 miles away in South Florida, where federal agents and local deputies quietly closed in on three men accused of some of the most violent crimes in Georgia.
Authorities said three inmates who slipped out of the DeKalb County Jail early Monday were taken into custody late that night in the Miami area without anyone being hurt, bringing an abrupt end to an hours-long search led by the U.S. Marshals Service and multiple regional fugitive task forces.
The escapees were identified as Stevenson Charles, 24, Yusuf Minor, 31, and Naod Yohannes, 25. All three were being held at the DeKalb County Jail in Decatur, a northeastern suburb of Atlanta, on felony charges that included murder, armed robbery and arson, according to the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office.
Their absence was discovered during a routine security check early Monday morning.
Jail officials launched an internal search of the facility after realizing the men were no longer in custody. The sheriff’s office confirmed the escape but declined to release details about how the inmates managed to get out of the secure facility.
Law enforcement agencies quickly issued alerts describing the men as dangerous and potentially armed. Assistance poured in from local police departments and federal authorities as investigators worked to track the fugitives’ movements beyond the jail’s walls.
The U.S. Marshals Service concentrated significant resources on locating Charles, a figure authorities described as particularly high risk.
According to the Marshals Service, Charles has been “charged with, or convicted of, murder, aggravated assault, weapons violations, sodomy on a person less than 10 years old, kidnapping, carjacking, armed robbery and probation violations.”
Court records show that in 2024, Charles entered guilty pleas in Georgia to a long list of offenses, including false imprisonment, aggravated sodomy, two counts of kidnapping, two counts of armed robbery and two counts of aggravated assault. He was sentenced to life in prison.
Prior to that case, prosecutors said Charles was convicted in 2023 in federal court in Florida for a violent crime spree in Miami that involved carjacking, kidnapping and the robbery of five people.
As investigators pieced together the escape timeline, they learned the three men did not remain in the Atlanta area for long.
Authorities said Charles contacted his girlfriend in Florida shortly after breaking free.
At approximately 2:30 a.m., investigators said, a Lyft driver arrived at the home of Minor’s girlfriend, where all three fugitives were picked up.
The driver transported them to a vacant property in Stone Mountain, Georgia, an address authorities later linked to Minor.
The ride did not end there. Investigators were able to identify the Lyft driver and began working to locate her as concern grew about her safety.
Law enforcement later determined that the fugitives allegedly forced the driver to continue south, pushing her to drive toward Florida along a route leading to the Miami area, where Charles’ girlfriend was believed to be staying.
By Monday evening, the search narrowed. At about 9:30 p.m., investigators learned the men had rented an Airbnb in Miramar, Florida.
Surveillance efforts intensified as agencies coordinated across county and state lines.
Roughly an hour later, deputies with the Broward County Sheriff’s Office located the Lyft vehicle around 10:45 p.m.
When deputies attempted to initiate a traffic stop, Charles and Yohannes ran, prompting a brief foot pursuit.
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By 11:40 p.m., authorities said all three fugitives were in custody. Officials confirmed the arrests occurred without further incident.
Emergency responders later located the Lyft driver, who was evaluated and treated. Authorities did not release details about her condition.
According to the U.S. Marshals Service, Minor had been convicted of murder in 2024 and was serving a life sentence at the time of the escape. Yohannes was being held on arson and criminal damage charges.
Officials said all three men now face additional charges connected to the escape and events that followed.
The Georgia jailbreak unfolded just days after authorities in Louisiana closed the book on another high-profile escape involving violent offenders.
In that case, the final fugitive from a St. Landry Parish Jail escape earlier this month was captured more than two weeks after breaking out.
Keith Anthony Eli II, 24, was taken into custody in Opelousas, Louisiana, according to a Dec. 19 news release from St. Landry Parish Sheriff Bobby Guidroz.
Eli had been on the run since Dec. 3, when he and two other inmates disappeared from the parish jail.
At the time, Eli, Johnathan Jevon Joseph, 24, and Joseph Allen Harrington, 26, were being held on violent criminal charges. Authorities said their escape went undetected until the morning hours.
Guidroz said the inmates exploited a “degrading part of an upper wall area” inside the jail. Over time, officials said, the men removed mortar and concrete blocks, eventually creating an opening large enough to squeeze through.
Once outside their cell, the inmates used sheets and other materials to lower themselves down the exterior of the jail.
Investigators said they climbed onto a roof before dropping to the ground and fleeing.
Following the discovery of the escape, the sheriff’s office warned residents not to approach the men.
Two of the escapees were located relatively quickly, but Eli managed to avoid capture for more than two weeks.
Louisiana authorities have faced repeated scrutiny over jailbreaks in recent months, including a far larger escape from a New Orleans jail earlier this year.
In May, 10 inmates broke out of the Orleans Parish Prison after tearing a toilet and sink unit from a cell wall, authorities said.
The group then slipped through a hole in the wall during the early morning hours of May 16.
From there, investigators said the men exited through a loading dock door and traveled along a restricted perimeter road separating the jail from a nearby construction site.
Surveillance video later showed the inmates scaling a barbed wire fence, running across Interstate 10 and vanishing into a surrounding neighborhood.
Discarded jail clothing was later found in the area as law enforcement launched a sweeping manhunt that stretched across multiple states.
Most of the men were apprehended in the weeks following the escape. Three were caught within hours, while six more were tracked down later. One inmate, however, remained free for months.
That final fugitive, Derrick Groves, a convicted murderer, was taken back into custody on Oct. 8 in Atlanta, nearly five months after fleeing the Orleans Parish facility.
Officials said Groves was captured following a standoff at a residence in southwest Atlanta. “Let me be very clear: when someone escapes our custody, we will not stop until they are found,” Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson said in a statement.
“For nearly five months, law enforcement across multiple states worked tirelessly to bring Groves back into custody. I want to thank the Atlanta Police Department, the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office, the U.S. Marshals Service, and our own OPSO Fugitive Apprehension Team for their relentless pursuit and commitment to public safety,” Hutson said.
