Federal Jury Convicts Jail Escapee

United States Attorney Richard W. Moore of the Southern District of Alabama announced that on February 9, 2021, a South Alabama jury convicted Reginald Howell of Mobile, Alabama, of one charge of Escape.  Howell is scheduled to be sentenced on May 7, 2021, before United States District Judge Kristi DuBose.  The maximum penalty that could be imposed for the offense is five years in prison and a fine of $250,000.

In October 2020, Reginald Howell was housed in the Conecuh County Jail pending trial in the Southern District of Alabama on a 14-count indictment alleging multiple counts of robbery, conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute controlled substances, burglary involving controlled substances, and brandishing a firearm.  Howell escaped from the jail, then returned, using bolt cutters to cut his way back through the jail’s perimeter fences.  The investigation indicates that Howell returned to the jail to smuggle contraband into the facility.  Howell’s trial on the remaining charges against him is scheduled for April 2021.

The case was investigated by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Conecuh County Sheriff’s Office and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Kasee Heisterhagen and Deborah Griffin.