LEE COUNTY, Fla. (WINK) — A handcuffed teenager escaped from the back of a Lee County Sheriff’s vehicle on Monday afternoon, leading to a partial lockdown at Riverdale High School.
Sheriff’s deputies arrested 19-year-old Willie Edward Blanks III for battery, interfering with school functions, and prisoner escape on Tuesday morning. Blanks was originally arrested Monday afternoon, according to court documents, but escaped from the back of a Lee County Sheriff’s Office vehicle after a deputy rolled down the window.
A school resource deputy responded to a fight at the Riverdale High School lunchroom on Monday, an arrest report said. Blanks got into an argument with an unnamed female student.
A witness said Blanks moved around the table and poked her in the face. Surveillance video then showed Blanks “suddenly and aggressively” strike her in the face.
The two students got into an altercation before being separated by staff. The school resource deputy arrested Blanks for one count of domestic battery, based on the relationship.
The deputy handcuffed Blanks and brought him to a marked patrol car. As the deputy completed paperwork, Blanks complained of feeling nauseous. The deputy rolled down the rear windows, according to the report. The deputy also opened and closed the door multiple times after Blanks complained “he was going to be sick.”
As the deputy went to another car to obtain paperwork, the report said Blanks reached out of the window, opened the rear door, and ran away with his hands cuffed behind his back. The escape went unnoticed for several minutes, the report said.
When the deputy returned to his vehicle, he noticed Blanks was gone and immediately notified dispatch. The Sheriff’s Office School Threat Enforcement team responded and took over the investigation. Detectives found the deputy’s car has no interior door handles and the vehicle only locks from the outside.
Detectives reviewed surveillance video, which appeared to show Blanks stick his arm or foot out of the door around 1:30 p.m. Surveillance video showed Blanks open the door and “stealthily” exit the vehicle with his hands still behind his back, the report said.
The video showed Blanks run across the parking lot before leaving the frame. A separate camera later captured Blanks running through the parking lot with both hands in front of him, jumping the fence. Blanks ran off campus towards Buckingham Road, the report said.
The Sheriff’s Office deployed K9 units and a helicopter to search for Blanks. Deputies searched for several hours, but could not find Blanks, the report said. The school was placed on partial lockdown from 1:35 p.m. to 2:35 p.m., delaying dismissal.
RELATED: Secure status lifted at Riverdale High School following incident
School officials made no mention of the arrest and escape in an email to parents on Monday. The school said there was an “incident on campus” and all students are safe. On Monday, the Lee County Sheriff’s Office said there was an isolated incident but did not provide more information.
WINK News saw the Sheriff’s Office deploy multiple dogs and a drone just south of the high school, off Buckingham Road, around 6:00 p.m.
The Sheriff’s Office Fugitive Warrants Unit located Blanks near Billy Creek Preserve in Fort Myers just before 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday. Detectives arrested Blanks and brought him to the Lee County Jail, where he agreed to speak without a lawyer present, the report said.
The school district confirmed that Blanks is a student at Riverdale High School. It said law enforcement made the determination to lift the secure status lockout, even though Blanks was not in custody.
“The safety and security of our students is our top priority, and the Secure was initiated to ensure the students stayed safe,” said Rob Spicker, Lee County School District communications director. “In addition to any legal consequences, students who violate the Code of Conduct face disciplinary action.”
WINK News sent the Sheriff’s Office a detailed list of questions, including whether the school resource deputy could face discipline. Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Anita Iriarte said the incident remains under review.
Richard Kolko, a retired FBI Special Agent, said that securing prisoners in the back of patrol cars is part of training for every law enforcement officer. He said it’s common for officers to roll down the window if a prisoner isn’t feeling well. However, law enforcement is also trained not give them enough room to escape, Kolko said.
“Deputies go through annual training,” Kolko said. “This is one of those things they’ll probably just go over that again and make sure it’s fresh in everybody’s minds.”