The Associated Press
KINGSPORT, Tenn.- An inmate escaped from a prison work crew Wednesday and sexually assaulted a woman at knifepoint, authorities said.
A manhunt was under way for James Daniel Bird II, 25, who was serving a 15-year sentence for theft and forgery at a minimum-security annex of the Northeast Correctional Complex.
The lone supervisor of the 10-man work crew saw Bird flee on foot while the inmates were working at Warriors Path State Park in Kingsport, Department of Correction spokeswoman Amanda Sluss said.
Authorities considered Bird armed and dangerous.
“We have the area saturated,” Sullivan County Sheriff Maj. Harold Owens said. “We have all our detectives out working on it.”
A woman identified Bird as the man who tied her up and sexually assaulted her at knifepoint. The woman told investigators it took her more than an hour to untie herself and call for help.
Bird, who began his sentence on Jan. 29, 2000, was to be eligible for parole in February, according to a state database of felony offenders.