MEMPHIS, Tenn. – A man accused of raping a child escaped from a police car during a Memphis snowstorm when temperatures were listed at 13 degrees. The bitter cold turned out to be too much for the escapee as he surrendered to authorities less than an hour later, according to reports.
The Memphis Police Department said Demarkus Davis, 20, while handcuffed, somehow managed to escape from a transport unit Sunday evening as snow was blanketing the streets. A corrections officer who was transporting Davis flagged down a Memphis police officer just before 11 p.m. to report the escape, Action News 5 reported.
Davis was wanted on a warrant charging him with two counts of child rape. Memphis police broadcast the wanted man’s description, indicating he was dressed in a pair of jeans and hooded sweatshirt.
At the time of the escape, Memphis temperatures plunged to a chilling 13 degrees as snow piled up, making it a bad night for Davis’s plans to evade capture in his light attire.
About 45 minutes after his getaway, Davis apparently stopped a stranger and asked the individual to call police so he could surrender.
Davis was picked up late Sunday night about a half mile from the location of his escape, and subsequently transported to the Shelby County Jail, according to the New York Post.
He was booked early Monday morning and is being held on two counts of child rape in addition to one count of escape.
On Wednesday, Davis’s bond was set at $76,000.
