HENDERSON, Ky. (WEHT) — Henderson residents can breathe a sigh of relief after a nationwide manhunt for escaped Ohio inmate Bradley Gillespie comes to a close.
The Henderson Police Department held a press conference Sunday evening and confirmed the body of Gillespie was found by a boater on the Ohio River.
The search started Wednesday morning when Henderson Police found what they believed to be a stolen vehicle occupied by two escaped inmates from Lima, Ohio. Authorities spotted the vehicle, a Mercury Capris convertible, just after 3 a.m. on Highway 41 near Atkinson Park.
When officers tried to pull the vehicle over, a pursuit began. They say the fugitives crashed on Camaro Drive, where the two ran away. One of the suspects, James Lee, was taken to a hospital and then apprehended.
The other escaped inmate, Bradley Gillespie, was able to avoid arrest and led officers on a manhunt for several days. Gillespie was a convicted double murderer and faced a variety of other criminal charges.
The day before they were spotted in Henderson, Gillespie and Lee were discovered missing from the Allen-Oakwood Correctional Institution, which is about 350 miles from Evansville, Indiana.
During multiple press conferences held throughout the manhunt, police reminded residents to stay vigilant and call 911 if they spotted Gillespie. Officers tell us more than 40 law enforcement and first responding agencies assisted in the search.
The U.S. Marshals and the Ohio State Highway Patrol offered a reward of up to $20,000 for information leading to Gillespie’s arrest. The Henderson Police Department has also offered $10,000, bringing the total amount up to $30,000.
