Bowie County inmate captured after night-long manhunt
He is the second inmate to escape police custody in the ArkLaTex in 2026
BOWIE COUNTY, Texas (KSLA) - Bowie County inmate Omarion Lamon Owens is back behind bars after escaping police custody Wednesday night, sparking a night-long manhunt involving multiple agencies.
ESCAPE FROM HOSPITAL
Sheriff leaders say around 9:20 p.m. on Oct. 21, Owens, 22, fled while being treated at CHRISTUS St. Michael Hospital for an alleged hand injury he suffered while in jail.
Officials say Owens had notified family of his location and made plans to escape. A Bowie County jailer did not follow policy and allowed Owens to make contact with relatives at the hospital.
Owens was later able to remove his restraints while using the restroom, took off his orange jail clothing and fled the facility on foot. He was spotted several times wearing only boxer shorts, according to the sheriff’s office.
CAPTURE AFTER MANHUNT
Law enforcement searched the area around the hospital for hours.
After about four hours of freedom, officers located Owens around 2 a.m. on Oct. 22 hiding on a second-floor stairway landing at the back of a nearby apartment complex on Kennedy Lane.
He was arrested without further incident and taken back to the Bowie County Jail.
CHARGES, CRIMINAL HISTORY
Owens had been in jail awaiting trial on several serious charges, including:
- Theft of a Firearm
- Two counts of Aggravated Assault Causing Serious Bodily Injury
- Two counts of Aggravated Robbery
- Injury to a Child or Elderly Individual
- Two counts of Aggravated Assault with a Deadly Weapon
- Escape (prior attempt)
- Deadly Weapon in a Penal Institution
- Assault Causing Bodily Injury
- Bond Surrender for Aggravated Assault
- Two counts of Bond Surrender for Aggravated Robbery
Owens is now being held without bond on the new escape charge, and a judge has granted a motion that all previous bonds be revoked.
Owens was originally arrested back in 2025 after a shooting in March of that year that left a mother and her 10-year-old daughter shot while sleeping in their bed, according to the Texarkana Texas Police Department. More than 60 bullets were fired into the victim’s home in the middle of the night in just 11 seconds. The mother was wounded, and her daughter was left in critical condition before eventually stabilizing enough to go home.
INVESTIGATION ONGOING
Sheriff officials continue to investigate the escape and possible accomplices. At this time, they are not saying if any action will be taken against the jailer who violated department policy.
He is the second inmate to escape police custody in the ArkLaTex in 2026.
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