Georgia
2 inmates charged with murder escape from Georgia jail
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Authorities in Georgia asked for the public’s assistance on Monday, Feb. 9, after two inmates facing violent crime charges escaped from jail over the weekend.
Two inmates escaped custody from the Sumter County Jail at around 9:30 p.m. local time on Sunday, Feb. 8, according to the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office. The Sumter County Jail is located in Americus, Georgia, a small city about 139 miles south of Atlanta.
The inmates, identified as Ricky Martin, 20, and Kentravious Holmes, 21, were being held on multiple charges, including murder, aggravated assault, and aggravated battery, according to the sheriff’s office. The escape prompted a widespread search involving multiple law enforcement agencies, and authorities released a be on the lookout, or BOLO, alert for the inmates on the morning of Monday, Feb. 9.
Authorities did not immediately release details on how the inmates escaped, but Sheriff Eric Bryant told local television station WALB that investigators were “still following up on different things that we’re finding inside the building.”
The sheriff added that it appears that there was “some type of mechanical failure with the locking system” at the facility, according to WALB.
During a news conference on Monday, Feb. 9, Albany Police Chief Michael Persley said the inmates were spotted in a stolen vehicle by license plate cameras, WALB reported. One of the inmates has family and other potential contacts in Albany, Georgia, a city about 38 miles south of Americus, Persley said.
It was unclear if escaped inmates were still in the area. Authorities have asked anyone with information on the inmates and their whereabouts to call 911 or contact the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office.
The Sumter County Sheriff’s Office and the Albany Police Department did not immediately respond to USA TODAY’s requests for comment on Monday, Feb. 9.
Escaped inmates were arrested in connection with separate shootings
The sheriff’s office described Martin as 5 feet, 4 inches in height and weighing about 120 pounds, with “un-twisted dreads.”
Holmes was described as about 5 feet, 8 inches tall and weighing about 155 pounds, “with un-twisted dreads, and multiple tattoos on his face and neck, including a ‘$’ sign, a broken heart, and ‘Baby Kay’ over his right eye,” according to the sheriff’s office.
Martin was booked into the Sumter County Jail in February 2025 after he was arrested and charged with murder, aggravated assault, and aggravated battery, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. He was arrested in connection with a shooting in Americus that left two dead and another injured.
At the time, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation said local police responded to a shooting on Feb. 8, 2025, and discovered multiple victims suffering from gunshot wounds. Peyton Brielle Roberts, 5, died after being transported to the hospital, while a 19-year-old, later identified as Jotavis Roshon Leverette, died from his injuries at a hospital.
Holmes was arrested in May 2025 and transported to the Sumter County Jail, according to the Americus Police Department. He was accused of fatally shooting 21-year-old Amon Kevone Harvey in April 2025, WALB reported at the time.
Recent jailbreaks across the United States
The escape in Georgia comes after three inmates fled from a county jail east of Atlanta in December. The three inmates, including one charged with murder, were captured about a day after their escape.
Earlier that month, another Georgia inmate escaped from custody at a hospital and used ride-hailing services, including an Uber ride, to evade sheriff’s deputies. The inmate, identified as Timothy Shane, 52, was captured after about three days in Covington, Georgia, a small city outside Atlanta, authorities said.
On Dec. 19, authorities arrested the last of three inmates who escaped from a Louisiana jail in early December by removing mortar and concrete blocks from a degraded part of a wall.
In June 2025, a former Arkansas police chief, convicted murderer and rapist Grant Hardin, was recaptured after a 12-day manhunt. Hardin had escaped from prison disguised as a guard and made it only a mile from the facility before he was found.
Earlier in the year, 10 inmates brazenly escaped from a New Orleans jail. Authorities said the inmates fled through a hole in a cell wall after ripping away a toilet and sink unit on the morning of May 16, 2025.
Most of the escapees were caught in the weeks after, and since then, multiple people have been charged with helping the inmates escape or stay on the run. The final inmate was recaptured Oct. 8 in Atlanta, nearly five months after the escape.
Contributing: Jeanine Santucci and N’dea Yancey-Bragg
The Georgia Public Service Commission this week approved a plan expected to reduce utility bills for Georgia Power customers by a few dollars a month.
The commission said the change will generate about $285 million in total annual savings for Georgia Power customers, or roughly $50 per year — about $4.04 per month — for the average residential customer using 1,000 kilowatt-hours a month.
The Georgia PSC voted Thursday to lower overall rates as part of the approved plan.
Georgia Power Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer Tyler Cook said the decision will provide “real savings for Georgia families and businesses as the heat of summer begins and energy use increases.”
“At Georgia Power, our teams work every day to run our business efficiently and keep reliable and affordable energy flowing to our customers,” Cook said.
Cook said the outcome followed months of work between Georgia Power and PSC staff, including reviews, public hearings and input from residents and intervenors.
The approved plan is tied to a stipulated agreement reached earlier this month involving two cases filed with the PSC in February, the Fuel Cost Recovery case and the Storm Cost Recovery case. Those cases addressed recovering fuel costs used to generate electricity and expenses tied to restoring power after storms.
Georgia Power said its rates remain, on average, about 15% below the national average and that it is still on track to provide additional annual savings of about $102 per year for typical residential customers beginning in 2029.
ATLANTA – The Georgia Public Service Commission approved a stipulated agreement on Thursday to lower utility rates for Georgia Power customers starting June 1.
The regulatory body voted to pass the deal without changes, establishing how the utility can bill for fuel costs and storm damage restoration expenses.
State regulators approve rate cuts
What we know:
The Georgia Public Service Commission (PSC) voted 3-2 to reject several utility cost amendments before ultimately passing the overall deal. Under the approved agreement, a typical residential customer using 1,000 kilowatt-hours per month will see monthly bills decrease by roughly $4.03 to $4.04. Total annual savings across all 2.8 million Georgia Power customers are projected to reach approximately $285 million.
The deal reduces how much money the utility can recover from its customer base for storm expenses by nearly 60%, dropping the revenue requirement from $270 million down to $109 million. The agreement also extends the amortization of storm recovery costs, largely tied to Hurricane Helene in 2024, to 67 months, caps natural gas advance purchases at 20% over a 36-month window, and cuts $13 million from the company’s original fuel recovery estimates.
Accountability questions remain unresolved
What we don’t know:
While the PSC agreed to launch a separate investigation into how fuel costs are allocated, officials have not yet confirmed how much large industrial operations will be forced to pay in future rate cases. Consumer advocacy groups argue that massive data center companies are driving up fuel costs for everyday ratepayers without paying for the infrastructure upgrades they require. Critics note that it remains unclear if a future utility asset structure will successfully shift financial burdens away from residential homes.
The Source: The information in this story was gathered from official press releases issued by the Georgia Public Service Commission and Georgia Power, as well as previous FOX 5 Atlanta reporting.
Georgia
St Louis CITY2 Goalkeeper Lucas McPartlin Called Up to U.S. U-19 MNT Domestic Training Camp in Fayetteville, Georgia | St. Louis SC
St Louis CITY2 goalkeeper Lucas McPartlin has been called up to the U.S. U-19 Men’s National Team for their upcoming domestic training camp in Fayetteville, Georgia from June 1-10, led by head coach Gonzalo Segares. McPartlin will be representing the U.S. for the first time in his youth national team career. McPartlin is the first CITY SC goalkeeper in club’s history to get a national team call up.
The U.S. U-19’s will face Argentina in back-to-back matches on June 5 and 7, then close out their final match against Japan on June 9.
McPartlin has been a member of St Louis CITY2 since 2025 and made his professional debut against Sporting KC II in August 2025, earning his first professional clean sheet in a 3-0 win. The Missouri Native has made seven starts and appearances for CITY2 this season, earning three clean sheets and making 24 total saves, with a 3-1-3 record. McPartlin spent time with CITY SC in both preseason camps this year and has been a regular in first team training this year.
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