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Guards failed to 'thoroughly' check 2 escaped inmates cells, sheriff says

The two escaped inmates are still on the run since at least Monday and the U.S. Marshals are offering up to $15,000 in rewards for information.

A white supremacist leader and another inmate are still on the run after escaping the Jefferson County jail as early as Monday.

Sheriff Lafayette Woods said the two men, Wesley Gullett and Christopher Sanderson, escaped after putting "dummies" in their beds. He said that guards also failed to thoroughly inspect the inmates calls on at least one occasion between Monday and Tuesday.

Woods said the two escaped sometime between midnight on Monday and around 1:15 a.m. on Wednesday. The U.S. Marshals Service was notified of the escape at 4:30 a.m. on Wednesday. 

"[The guards] should've physically went in, maybe touched the bed, actually confirmed what they suspect, which is: thought it was a real, live body," Woods said, "and determined it was not, it was a dummy that was covered up."

Gullett was arrested in February along with 53 white supremacists from the New Aryan Empire. He is reportedly a leader within the group. Both inmates are facing federal charges.

RELATED: U.S. Marshals offering up to $15,000 in rewards for Jefferson County jail escapees

Woods explained that the Jefferson County Jail is one of several around Arkansas that house inmates from other counties while they await federal trials.

He conducted a walkthrough of the jail Wednesday and said he identified policies and procedures that can be improved. He would like to install cameras in areas that he considered to be blind spots.

RELATED: Sheriff says Jefferson County inmates could have escaped as early as Monday

Both Gullett and Sanderson are considered armed and dangerous.

If you have any information on their whereabouts, please call your local police department or U.S. Marshals at (501) 324-6256.

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