01/17/14 Rockford, IL – Handcuffed Female Prisoner Steals Winnebago County Sheriff’s Squad Car While Deputy Was Stopped For Gas – 2 Hour Manhunt – Escaped – Found In Garage

January 17, 2014

wandtv.com

Northern Illinois officials are investigating how a female prisoner managed to steal a Winnebago County sheriff’s car, prompting a two-hour manhunt.

The Rockford Register Star reports the 43-year-old Rockford woman managed to steal the squad car around 1 p.m. Thursday.

Authorities say she was being transported — in handcuffs — to the Winnebago County Jail when the deputy who was driving the car stopped for gas.

That’s when the woman managed to slip out of her handcuffs and get behind the wheel before driving away.

Sheriff Richard Meyers called the incident “unacceptable” and said “it shouldn’t have happened.”

The woman was eventually found in a garage and is now being held in the Winnebago County Jail without bond.

Meyers says an investigation is underway.

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