Alabama inmate caught after second prison break

Shane Vernon, 27

An escaped US inmate is back behind bars after a crime spree across several US states following his second prison break in less than a month.

Shane Vernon, 27, was apprehended near Atlanta, Georgia, three days after his getaway from an Alabama jail.

He fled by climbing into a ceiling space to bypass security doors after a guard left a door ajar.

Police say during his time on the run, Vernon invaded two homes, tied up residents and kidnapped a man.

In a press release, Coosa County Sheriff officials in Alabama said Vernon was allowed out of his holding cell on Sunday to make a phone call.

"While Vernon was using the phone he noticed that the correctional officer on duty had failed to properly secure one of the doors in the area of the jail he was in," officials said.

The correctional officer who left the door ajar is facing an internal investigation.

Vernon was able to "gain access to the maintenance area in the ceiling of the jail, where he went around the remaining four security doors and fled the facility" on foot, said authorities.

He then allegedly entered a home in Rockford, Alabama, tied up an elderly couple and stole their gun and 2016 Ford Fusion.

Vernon dumped that car near the state line and fled into the woods on foot with police dog handlers hot on his trail, say authorities.

The search party found he had stolen an electric dirt bike from another residence to continue his getaway, said officials.

On Monday, he allegedly broke into another home in Titus, Alabama, tying up a couple and their child, before stealing their van.

Vernon is then accused of kidnapping another householder on Monday, and forcing him to drive to Douglasville, near Atlanta.

The fugitive was arrested without incident on Tuesday night after police received a tip about a suspicious person near an apartment complex in Decatur, Georgia.

At the time of his arrest, Vernon had a .380 calibre pistol, cannabis, drug paraphernalia and alcohol, WSFA-TV reported.

He was initially arrested on 29 October for burglary and theft of property.

Last month Vernon was recaptured after about 12 hours on the run.

He had fled the jail on foot after forcibly removing his restraints, according to police.

Vernon was found in a nearby wooded area.