Tyrone Ruffin said the North Carolina jail takeover at Bertie-Martin Regional Jail ended Monday after inmates overpowered correctional officers and took control of the facility early Monday morning. He said the incident involved two correctional officers held hostage and lasted nearly 10 hours.
Ruffin told reporters during a Monday morning news conference that “The jail had been taken over and two correctional officers had been held hostage.” The Bertie County Sheriff's Office received the initial call around 5 a.m., when 88 inmates and three correctional officers were inside the facility.
Bertie-Martin Regional Jail response
The first deputy arrived within two minutes but could not enter the facility. Additional deputies set a secure perimeter while dozens of law enforcement agencies converged on the jail, and one correctional officer escaped shortly after the incident began.
Negotiations led to the safe release of the two hostage correctional officers and 18 inmates around 9:30 a.m. About 20 minutes later, another group of inmates was released from the facility, and the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation said SBI and FBI agents secured the jail Monday afternoon.
Monday afternoon at Bertie-Martin Regional Jail
Authorities said all inmates and staff were safe and accounted for after the response. Ruffin later said all three correctional officers were safe, had received medical treatment and that there were no fatalities.
Injured inmates and staff also received medical treatment after the incident. Inmates were then transferred to other detention facilities while investigators assessed the damage inside the jail, leaving the building under review as officials worked through how the takeover began.
What investigators will review
The main open question is how inmates were able to assault on-duty correctional officers and seize control of portions of the jail after the first deputy arrived within two minutes. That review will shape how the facility is assessed and how the response is judged inside Bertie-Martin Regional Jail.
