Alabama Corrections Officer Disappears While Escorting Inmate

FLORENCE, AL — A corrections officer with the Lauderdale County Sheriff's Office in Alabama is missing after she left the detention center to take an inmate to court for a hearing, according to authorities.

Vicki White, assistant director of corrections with Lauderdale County, left the detention center with inmate Casey Cole White on Friday morning and neither has been seen since, according to a Facebook post by the sheriff's office. The pair are not related.

Casey Cole White was being held on capital murder charges, according to authorities.

The vehicle they left the detention center in was discovered at a nearby shopping center parking lot, according to the sheriff's office. Investigators are currently searching for surveillance videos that might provide insight into what happened.

On Saturday morning, Sheriff Rick Singleton confirmed the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, FBI, and U.S. Marshals are assisting in the investigation.

At a news conference Friday, Singleton said Vicky White, a 16 year veteran of the department, was armed with a 9mm when she left the detention center with the inmate around 9:41 a.m. She was alone with the inmate, which the sheriff said was in direct violation of department policy.

White reportedly left the detention center to take the inmate to a mental health evaluation at the courthouse; however, Singleton said there was no mental health evaluation for the inmate scheduled at the courthouse.

White also told co-workers she had a doctor’s appointment scheduled, which was confirmed but the office said the deputy never showed.

Officials said no one realized the two were missing until 3:30 p.m. on Friday. Deputies tried to contact Vicky White but her phone repeatedly went to voicemail.

Singleton said his department was “aggressively investigating” the incident and would be looking into previous interaction between the two to “see if something else was going on.”

Singleton said his department was “shocked” and that it was obviously a possibility that the corrections officer helped him escape. Singleton told news outlets that Vicky White had turned in her retirement papers the day before she went missing.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.