Two Randolph County jailers killed Suspects caught within nine hours in Kansas By Chuck Embree/Index Managing Editor Two Randolph County jail guards were killed this morning when a man and a woman entered the Huntsville facility through the front door and fired shots at the unarmed officers once they were let in. The shooting occurs just 16 months after a gunfire exchange between local law enforcement officers and two Georgia state prison fugitives which left five officers wounded. Jail supervisor Leon Egley, 33, and jailer Jason Acton, 36, were shot and killed Thursday morning around 12:30 a.m. reported Sheriff Don Ancell. Acton died at the scene while Egley was pronounced dead at Moberly Regional Medical Center. Nine hours after the shooting, Moberly Lt. Colonel Dennis Cupp said authorities in Doniphan County, Kansas apprehended the suspects who were driving a brown colored, late-model Mercury Couger. The pair is being interrogated in Kansas while local officers are en route to bring the man and woman back to Randolph County said Cupp. According to an Associated Press report, the suspects were caught unarmed around 9:30 a.m. in Wathena, Kan., about 130 miles west of Huntsville and just across the Missouri River in Kansas, said Doniphan County, Kan., Sheriff Mike Batchelder. The report said the pair were caught without incident along U.S. 36 by a police officer, who was aware of reports about the suspects when he saw them walking along the highway. They did not resist the arrest Batchelder told the AP. The male suspect is identified as Michael Andrew Tisius, 19, Moberly. The female suspect is identified as Tracy Mullington, 21. Murder charges were filed by Randolph County Prosecutor Michael Fusselman and a warrant was issued by Associate Circuit Judge James Cooksey. Ancell said the suspects were let inside the jail shortly before 12:30 a.m. after they rang the overnight buzzer, and Tisius allegedly opened fire on Egley and Acton using a handgun. The officers were unarmed Ancell said because they were following a county policy which prohibits weapons worn by officers while they are among prisoners at the jail. A deputy came upon the scene to discover the bodies and called for assistance. Responding was the Huntsville and Moberly Police, Missouri State Highway Patrol, and the sheriff departments of Macon, Monroe, Chariton, and Howard Counties. Ancell said the jail's front door video camera serves only as a surveillance camera to help guards identify who are at the doorway and do not record images on tape. Unnamed witnesses at the scene, including prisoners, informed authorities of what took place said Ancell. "I believe they were attempting a jail break on an inmate we were holding from Macon County," said Ancell. "They never found the right keys to his cell and fled the scene without him." Ancell said he believes the suspects were trying to free inmate Roy Vance, 27, Macon. According to Macon County Sheriff Robert Dawson, Vance has been arrested for a number of crimes and recently was arrested for a probation violation on a drug charge. While incarcerated in Macon, Dawson said Vance attempted to escape jail and damaged property. Vance was transferred to Randolph County on May 23. Ancell said Egley and Acton were guarding 36 prisoners at the jail while two other deputies were on patrol within the county when the shooting occurred. "People come and go through the front doors of the jail all the time. They come in to give us information to report an incident problem that has occurred, and we respond to it," said Ancell. "There is no (protective) barrier between the front lobby and our dispatch station. It was wide open for anyone to access." Ancell said the jail will be closed while renovation work on the front door entrance is made to provide better security for his officers. A bullet proof barrier to separate the front lobby from officers is scheduled to be built. The 36 inmates have been transferred to nearby county jail facilities he said. "It has been publicly known that our jail and courthouses have little security measures to ensure the safety and well-being of our officers or anyone else who may be in the building but as a county, we have not been able to do anything to improve this," said Ancell of the 91-year old two-story brick house converted into a jail. "Now you see what has happened. This is a pretty sad day here for everyone." Roadblocks were set up around the county before daybreak as authorities searched for the suspects. A woman arrested in Moberly initially thought to be a suspect later was determined to be the wrong woman and was released. "On behalf of the Randolph County Commission, at this time our concerns and prayers extend to the families of Leon and Jason. This is a terrible thing that has happened," said Presiding Commissioner Fred Ward. "Right now, we are working with the sheriffs department to improve the security at the jail. We want to make it safe for all personnel." The past two years county voters overwhelmingly have turned down sales tax issues to construct new courthouse and jail facilities. Ward said the commission will discuss whether to place another sales tax issue before voters this November to support county infrastructure. Nine months ago Egley told the Moberly Monitor-Index he was concerned for his safety while working at the county jail. In an October, 1999 interview with the Monitor-Index, Egley said, "There always seems to be something wrong and there is just too many opportunities for something negative to happen and things usually do happen," ... "For some prisoners, this is home for eight to ten months or longer for an inmate while they work their way through the court system. The inside of these walls our outside in the recreation area are the only places they see and we are stuck with them until the court completes its function." Also in the October story, sheriffs detective Jeff Vogan said " "As you can tell, things get pretty busy around here and can easily get out of hand if we have some prisoners who decide to become unruly and cause problems," ... "The front doorway we have is a joke. Actually, none of our doors are secure. If a person comes to the door, the scene from the video camera can't really tell you who is standing there. Anyone who has a personal agendum on their mind of causing harm or plan to help their buddy escape could easily be standing there with a shotgun. We wouldn't notice it until we came to the door, and then they could just blast a hole through the door or windows. These (windows and doorway) are just like ones you would find in your home and there is nothing special about them. Our jailers are practically helpless." Chris Borgerson, director of Moberly Area Community College Law Enforcement Academy, said Acton, who was employed for only two months with the sheriffs office, was a recent graduate from the academy. "Jason was one of the best students I have ever had in class. He was an even-tempered man who wanted to serve the public and provide safety to the community," said Borgerson. "He had such a bright future." Huntsville City Mayor Carl Gordy said he and Egley, who served as Ward 4 councilman and chairman of the Huntsville finance committee, on Monday was discussing security issues with Huntsville. Gordy said Egley was concerned about dogs running rampant in town and thought the safety and well-being of residents was being threatened. The Huntsville council is considering a dog leash law he said. "This is just a terrible tragedy for everyone here in Randolph County," said Huntsville Mayor Carl Gordy this morning. "This only adds to the great need that we have to get a more secure jail facility here. It's a shame that something like this, when two lives are lost, to draw more attention to a security problem which we have known about for a long time." Thursday morning's slayings came after the February 1999 woundings of officers who were trying to arrest two fugitives from Georgia who was holed up in a mobile home in Huntsville.