NEWS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
March 19, 2008
Contact: Michele Nicholson
Public Information Officer
(850) 651-7420
NORTHWEST FLORIDA LAWMEN
SEARCHING FOR ESCAPED PRISONER
Eugene Smith
Law enforcement officers
from across Northwest Florida are currently looking for a man who peppersprayed
a deputy from Crisp County Georgia this afternoon while at a restroom break off
Interstate 10 in Okaloosa County. The suspect, 33-year old Eugene Smith,
apparently sprayed the officer in the face, then took his patrol car and headed
west on Highway 90 towards Santa Rosa County.
The officer fired
shots at the car. It is unknown if Smith was struck. Smith was being transported
back to Crisp County from a location in Texas for a non-violent crime.
Smith is
described as a black male who looks like a female. He’s 5’9” tall, weighs around
140 pounds, and was wearing blue jeans, a gray top, and a fur imitation jacket.
Anyone who sees
Smith or the patrol car from Crisp County is asked to contact their local law
enforcement agency immediately.
No other
details are available at this time.
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