A convicted killer has been on the loose in Georgia for five days after slipping away from his work detail.
The Richmond County Sheriff’s Office has asked for the public’s help in locating inmate Stacy Huggins.
Huggins, who was in transitional housing, reported to his assigned work site in Hephzibah, about a two-and-a-half-hour drive Southeast of Atlanta, last Thursday.
“It was then reported that sometime during the day Stacy Huggins left his work site on foot in an unknown direction and never returned to the site,” the sheriff’s office said in a Facebook post Tuesday.
Huggins was found guilty of a 1990 murder in Fulton County, local outlet WRDW reported, citing the Georgia Department of Corrections.
Residents near the worksite questioned why the authorities did not warn them about Huggins' escape earlier.
They told WRDW they had heard rumors of an inmate on the run, and only after they called the sheriff’s office did they inform them.
“That should have been an immediate alert put out to everybody. He could be anywhere in this town,” Deborah Clement said.
She continued, “My question is, why is he even out? Why is he on a work detail?”
Ralph Graham also questioned the decision to put Huggins on work detail: “I don’t know what a murderer is doing on a work detail either. That doesn’t sound good.”
“Well, just hope he ain’t ready for another murder,” he added.
Tracy Hyland, who runs a local daycare, said, “We go outside all the time, and we have teachers and just a bunch of women. We’re outside with a bunch of little kids.”
“Had we known that there was somebody, then we absolutely would not have gone outside,” she said.
The sheriff’s office told WRDW that when they learned he had a murder charge, they alerted the public and reached out to the U.S. Marshals.
The Georgia Department of Corrections said in a statement to The Independent that Huggins has been in transitional housing for nine months and was working at a lumber company.
“Transitional Centers are our lowest security level facilities; therefore, offenders must meet specific guidelines and criteria,” the department said. “Once at the facility, the residents live in a structured setting while they are also provided counseling and assistance in finding and maintaining outside employment to assist with their reentry.”
“Unfortunately, Inmate Huggins chose not to take advantage of this opportunity by walking away from his place of employment; therefore, we have dedicated resources toward swift action and recapture,” the department added.
The Independent has reached out to the sheriff’s office for comment.
