A North Carolina jail erupted into chaos before sunrise Monday when inmates allegedly overpowered correctional officers, took two guards hostage and briefly controlled parts of the lockup.
Before dawn, 88 inmates and three guards were inside the Windsor detention center when the lockup spiraled into a hostage crisis.
Sheriff Tyrone Ruffin described the takeover as beginning with an attack on correctional staff before inmates seized parts of the facility.
One officer got out, but two others were trapped inside as hostages.
Ruffin said the first deputy was on scene almost immediately, but the situation inside kept law enforcement from entering.
Authorities quickly locked down the area around the facility as the standoff drew a massive law enforcement response.
The response eventually pulled in more than 20 agencies, from federal investigators to state agents and nearby sheriff’s offices.
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“Our top priority is the safety of our staff, inmates, and the surrounding community,” Ruffin said as the crisis was still unfolding.
“We are coordinating closely with multiple law enforcement partners to resolve this situation safely and as quickly as possible.”
By midmorning, negotiations brought out the two captive guards unharmed, along with 18 inmates.
Minutes later, another large group of inmates exited the facility. State agents moved in next to finish clearing the facility.
The standoff was over by early afternoon, with officials saying no staff or inmates were missing.
“All inmates and staff are safe and accounted for, and those who sustained injuries have received treatment. Inmates have been transferred to other facilities for housing, and the detention center will remain secured while personnel assess the extent of the damage,” the SBI wrote on X.
“The public is asked to avoid the area as crews continue working to clear the scene.”
Authorities had not identified a motive and Ruffin said the danger had not spread beyond the jail.
The jail was set to stay shut down while crews evaluated how badly the takeover damaged the facility last year.
A similar hostage scare had unfolded at a Tennessee prison, where a nighttime disturbance forced officers to use chemical agents.
The trouble centered on Trousdale Turner Correctional Center, a private prison northeast of Nashville.
Local authorities were alerted shortly after 10 p.m., drawing another multi-agency response.
“A multi-agency response followed a short time after the initial call,” the department said.
“The incident was contained inside the facility fences. The prison staff reported all prisoners were returned back to their cells.”
The unrest began with inmates refusing to return to their cells, according to CoreCivic, the company that runs the prison.
Three guards were held during the disturbance, but WTVF-TV reported they escaped without major injuries.
At one point, roughly 100 officers from several agencies were at the facility.
CoreCivic described the disturbance as a coordinated movement of inmates from multiple housing units into an inner yard.
The group allegedly damaged property, interfered with cameras, set small fires and refused repeated commands.
“This group created safety hazards by attempting to destroy facility property, compromising security cameras, setting a few small fires and refusing to comply with multiple verbal directives provided by facility staff,” CoreCivic said.
Local law enforcement was brought in as the prison worked to regain control.
“Chemical agents were deployed in accordance with department protocol,” CoreCivic stated.
Trousdale County Sheriff Ray Russell said the unrest never turned into an escape threat.
“There’s no threat at all. The prisoners never got to the main fence where they could escape. They were in a yard and contained,” Russell said.
Russell said officers used gas to force the group back from the yard.
CoreCivic reported that a correctional officer sustained minor injuries and was later given medical care before being discharged.
A 2023 St. Louis hostage case started with breakfast trays and ended with a 73-year-old guard restrained inside the Justice Center.
The officer had been serving breakfast shortly after 6 a.m. when two inmates allegedly made their move.
The setup began when two inmates were let out to help distribute trays, Corrections Director Jennifer Clemons-Abdullah said.
Authorities said the officer was knocked down after being hit from behind, then struck again on the floor.
“They saw an opportunity and they took it,” Clemons-Abdullah said.
A law enforcement source said the guard was dragged into the showers, stripped of his mace, keys and handcuffs, and restrained there.
With the officer’s radio in their possession, inmates allegedly turned the hostage situation into a demand for “pizza and chicken patties.”
Authorities said inmates fashioned makeshift weapons from whatever was available, including brooms, cords and metal from TV brackets.
SWAT officers moved in after 8 a.m., ending the hostage ordeal within minutes.
Interim Public Safety Director Chris Coyle said “less-than-lethal ammunition” was used, though he did not provide details.
The guard later left the Justice Center on a stretcher. Officials described his injuries as minor, though a law enforcement source listed a dislocated jaw, an eye injury and a concussion.
Two inmates were also hurt, allegedly by other inmates during the standoff.
Prosecutors later charged six inmates in connection with the uprising.
Earnest Torran Lyons, Paul Montrell Mondaine, Cleveland Verdale Washington Jr., Anthony Donvanchio Newberry and Eric Jordan Williams were charged with kidnapping.
Washington, Newberry and Richard Cornelius Bolden were charged with damage to jail property.
Williams also faced third-degree assault of a special victim, while Mondaine was charged with unlawful use of a weapon.
Prosecutors said Williams began the attack from behind, Newberry helped move the guard into the shower area and others later restrained him inside the pod.
Broken television parts later became part of the inmates’ alleged makeshift arsenal.
Mondaine allegedly held a weapon to the guard and warned, “I’ll cut your throat if they come in here.”
