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KANNAPOLIS – Escaped murderer Ramone Alston was captured shortly before 2 a.m. today (Friday) at a hotel on Cloverleaf Parkway in Kannapolis, according to a press release from the NC Department of Adult Corrections (DAC).

He was taken into custody without injuries to anyone.

Shortly thereafter, a female acquaintance, Jacobia Crisp, was arrested in Alamance County and charged with felony aiding and abetting a fugitive.

Alston – serving a life sentence at Bertie Correctional Institution in Windsor – escaped from correctional officers Tuesday morning as he was arriving for an appointment at a Hillsborough hospital. Since then, hundreds of law enforcement and public safety officials were involved in the search for him.

A van carrying Alston and two officers departed Bertie Correctional Institution at around 3 a.m. Tuesday for the long drive to Hillsborough in Orange County. There, Alston had an appointment at UNC Gastroenterology.

He escaped from custody around 7 a.m. when the transport van arrived at the medical facility. Alston had somehow managed to free himself from leg restraints and, still in handcuffs, jumped out of the van and ran into adjacent woods.

Alston will be charged with felony escape from prison, and is being taken to a high security unit in the state prison system. There he will resume serving his life sentence for first degree murder and await court appearances for his escape charges.

The investigation will continue to determine his movements since he escaped on Tuesday, any additional accomplices that aided him, and if he committed any other crimes while on the run.

“I am grateful to our DAC staff and thankful for the support and effort from hundreds of local, state and federal public safety officers who helped in the search and investigation that returned Alston safely to custody,” said DAC Secretary Todd Ishee. “This was an incredible collaborative effort of many people and agencies.”

Alston was convicted of first-degree in the 2015 death of 1-year-old Maleah Williams, who was shot while she was outside playing at the family’s apartment in Chapel Hill.