DALLAS COUNTY, Texas — **EDITOR'S NOTE: The video above is from Dec. 27, 2022.
One of two of the inmates who escaped custody in Mississippi before reportedly leaving their stolen van in the East Texas area has been arrested.
According to Dallas County judicial records, Tyler Payne, 31, was booked into the Dallas County Jail around 2:45 a.m. on Tuesday. Hinds County Sheriff Tyree Jones says Payne was arrested following a "string of violent crimes and a pursuit in Frisco."
He was charged with aggravated robbery and failing to identify as a fugitive with the intent to give false information.
Payne is also being held on the following charges out of Hinds County, Mississippi:
- Auto burglary
- Business burglary
- Church burglary
- Motor vehicle taking
- Escape from Raymond Detention Center
- Armed carjacking
He was not given a bond.
Payne and Traverro McElroy, 36, are believed to have escaped the Raymond Detention Center in Jackson, Mississippi, around 7:30 p.m. on Christmas Eve.
McElroy, who's wanted for possession of a firearm and murder, is still believed to be at-large.
The Hinds County Sheriff's Office says they were performing a headcount around 11 a.m. Christmas Day when they learned Payne and McElroy had escaped. Hinds County Sheriff Tyree Jones said the inmates left the facility through the recreation center door and jumped several fences.
Officials said the inmates took a van that belonged to Belmont Missionary Baptist Church which was later found in Lake Fork in Wood County around noon on Christmas Day.
A statement from the Wood County Sheriff’s Office said the van was seen driving into Lake Fork. A dive team from the Quitman Fire Department was able to recover the vehicle.
Witnesses say after driving the van into the lake, they saw two men leave in a white or silver older model compact vehicle.
McElroy, who is reportedly still on the run, stands 5’5, weighs about 120 pounds and has a dread hairstyle. He is considered armed and dangerous.
Anyone with information regarding McElroy's whereabouts is asked to contact the WCSO at 903-763-2201 or HCSO at 601-352-1521.