A Mississippi homeowner and his family are safe after he was able to retrieve a firearm and shoot an escaped murderer who had taken them hostage.
Rafael McCloud escaped from Warren County Jail, where he was being held for the murder of a 69-year-old woman, earlier this month, The Vicksburg Post reported. He fashioned a shank and held up a guard, eventually stealing his uniform and escaping out of a side door. On Thursday around 4 a.m. McCloud broke into a home occupied by a man and his wife. He then took the couple hostage, tied them up, and stabbed the man. The husband was eventually able to break free and retrieve his firearm. He then shot McCloud to death.
Police found McCloud's body in the tub of one of the home's bathrooms.
"This is certainly not how we wanted this to end," Warren County Sheriff Martin Pace told The Post. "Our goal was to take him back into custody and have him stand before a jury in Warren County. But he brought this upon himself. We are incredibly relieved this family was not seriously injured and they were able to protect themselves this morning."
"It’s been a long week for this community and we appreciate the cooperation of the public as we have pursued this community."
Police believe he'd stolen the clothing he was wearing when he broke into the home.
"He had on tennis shoes, nice, white tennis shoes and a pair of blue jeans, so there is some indication someone has been helping him or he stole those items," Vicksburg Police Chief Walter Armstrong told the paper. "But the shoes looked to be the exact size he wears."
McCloud was in jail on charges that he murdered Sharon Wilson in 2015. Wilson's body was eventually recovered by ghost hunters at an abandoned hospital in Vicksburg, according to WLBT.