UPDATE: Police say Cedric Marks has been captured after escaping the custody of private prison transfer firm Texas Prisoner Transport Services.

Authorities say Marks was one of 10 prisoners being transported at the time. Two guards were on duty, one of whom left to get food. It remains unclear how Marks was able to escape their custody.


 

A man believed to be connected to the disappearance and deaths of Jenna Scott and Michael Swearingin, whose bodies were discovered in Oklahoma last month, has reportedly escaped from custody in Montgomery County.

Police say employees of a private company transporting Cedric Marks stopped for food in Conroe Sunday, at which point Marks escaped their custody.



"[L]aw enforcement are searching for an escaped prisoner in the area of 800 block of N. Loop 336 West," the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office said in a Facebook post. "Cedric Joseph Marks escaped from a private prisoner transport and was last seen wearing an orange jump suit and restraints. Marks has three pending murder charges and is a professional MMA fighter. Marks is considered extremely dangerous. If you see him contact law enforcement immediately!"




Of note is the mention of murder charges, which is the first official indication that Marks may be a suspect in the deaths of Scott and Swearingin.

Marks was extradited from Kent County, Michigan on January 31 for a burglary charge in Temple, where he allegedly broke into Jenna Scott's home. Our news partner, KWTX, reports that he is a former mixed martial arts fighter whose career ended in 2017, when he began teaching in Killeen. He had a relationship with Scott, who later asked a judge for a protective order after Marks reportedly threatened her and said he'd gotten away with murder in the past. 264th District Court Judge Paul LePak in Bell County denied her request.



 

Scott and Swearingin were last heard from on January 4. Their bodies were discovered 12 days later buried on rural property in Oklahoma.

Last month, Marks' wife, Ginell McDonough, was arrested in Muskegon County, Michigan and charged with harboring a fugitive. 26-year-old Maya Renee Maxwell was also arrested, charged with evidence tampering after police say she left Swearingin's car in Austin in hopes of concealing it from police.

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