Ex-prison guard Vicky White and inmate Casey White 'planned shootout' if captured

A murder suspect and the female prison guard he escaped with planned to die in a shootout if they were captured, police in Indiana have said.

Casey White, 38, and Vicky White (no relation), 56, were arrested on Monday after an 11-day manhunt after their vehicle was forced into a ditch.

The former surrendered but the latter shot herself before she could be arrested, according to police.

The pair are believed to have been romantically involved.

The two had vanished from a prison in Lauderdale County, Alabama, on 29 April.

According to officials, she said she was transporting him - by herself, against prison rules - to mental health evaluation that proved to be bogus.

It was Ms White's last day at work before retirement. She had recently sold her home and told colleagues she planned to spend more time at the beach.

Late on Monday, the Vanderburgh County Coroner's Office in Indiana confirmed that Vicky White had died in a local hospital after the attempted arrest.

More information on her death is expected to be released following an autopsy on Tuesday.

Vanderburgh County Sheriff Dave Wedding said the fugitives appeared to have spent nearly a week in the city of Evansville.

He said the couple was spotted in the parking lot of a local motel on Monday in a Cadillac. Later, a wig-wearing Ms White was seen checking out and getting into a car driven by Casey White.

Police set up surveillance and a chase ensued, ending with a US Marshal ramming his vehicle into theirs, causing it to fall in a ditch and turn on its side.

"We later found out, if they hadn't done that, the fugitive was going to engage in a shootout with law enforcement," Sheriff Wedding told reporters on Tuesday, saying Casey White had revealed those plans to police following his arrest.

He said Ms White shot herself "almost instantaneously" before deputies could get to her.

Several guns, including an AR-15 rifle and 9mm handguns, as well as multiple wigs and $29,000 (£23,500) in cash were found inside the vehicle.

Federal and state agencies across three states collaborated on the case.

According to US Marshals, the Whites had previously been last seen on Friday driving a copper-coloured Ford Edge with an Alabama registration plate.

Officials warned that the 6ft 9in Casey White was "extremely dangerous" and law enforcement should not "take any chances" with him.

Meanwhile, Ms White had a spotless record as a prison guard.

"I would have trusted Vicky with my life. I really mean it," Lauderdale County District Attorney Chris Connolly told reporters. "If we needed something from the jail, she was our go-to person, solid employee. That's why it's so shocking."

It is unclear what plan, if any, they had regarding their escape.

Sheriff Wedding said "they thought they'd driven far enough and wanted to stop for a while to get their bearings straight, then figure out the next place to travel".

Casey White was charged in September 2020 with murder over the stabbing of 58-year-old Connie Ridgeway. He was already serving 75 years for a series of violent crimes in 2015, including burglary, vehicle theft and a police chase.

He allegedly confessed to the murder, but later pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity, and was awaiting trial at the Lauderdale County Jail when he disappeared, authorities added. He faces execution if convicted.

The prisoner also now faces an escape charge. The details of his transfer back to the Alabama corrections system will be kept secret.