Escaped Georgia convict caught after I-77 chase in Chester County, police say

An escaped convict from Georgia led police on a high-speed chase in a stolen vehicle through South Carolina before he was caught in Chester County.

Kenneth Lee Arnold, 36, of Villa Rica, Ga., is charged with failure to stop for blue lights, possession of a stolen vehicle and being a fugitive from justice, said Robert Sprouse, Chester County Sheriff’s Office chief deputy.

The chase ended around 6 p.m. Monday near the York County line, police said.

Arnold crashed a stolen 2013 truck into the woods on the southbound side of I-77, near mile marker 69, after Chester deputies and other police pursued him for miles, Sprouse said.

Arnold had crossed the median on I-77 from northbound to southbound when he came to a stop near some woods, Sprouse said. Arnold then ran from the truck, he said.

He was caught in nearby trees after a chase by officers from state and local agencies, Sprouse said.

Arnold had escaped from a Georgia prison and passed through Columbia and Fairfield County in the stolen truck with S.C. Highway Patrol troopers and Fairfield County deputies pursuing him, according to a Chester County police incident report.

Police used stop sticks, a studded belt device designed to flatten tires, in an effort to stop Arnold as he drove north around mile marker 60, police said. However, the strips did not help and the pursuit went on another nine miles, police said.

Agents with South Carolina’s State Law Enforcement Division conformed that Arnold had escaped from a Georgia prison, police said. It is unclear when Arnold escaped.

Arnold, known by the alias of Big Lee, was serving a five-year sentence for theft and receiving stolen property at a prison in Augusta, Ga., according to the Georgia Department of Corrections.

Arnold has previous convictions for burglary, theft and possession of a gun by a convicted felon, court and prison records show.

This story was originally published January 15, 2019 at 11:48 AM with the headline "Escaped Georgia convict caught after I-77 chase in Chester County, police say."