Two people have been charged with helping Georgia prison con artist Arthur Lee Cofield Jr. escape from a minimum-security federal camp in May.
A South Georgia federal grand jury indicted James David Himick and Andrea Nashay Hubbard on allegations they aided Cofield’s May 26 escape from the Federal Correctional Institution Jesup camp. Court records show both were arrested Oct. 13.
The superseding indictment replaces an earlier case charging Cofield alone with escape. It does not explain what Himick or Hubbard allegedly did, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office declined to provide more details while the case continues.
Cofield walked away from the unfenced camp sometime after its 5 a.m. count. Officials did not discover him missing until the 4 p.m. count, leaving a window of as many as 11 hours.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation still lists Cofield as armed and dangerous and offers up to $10,000 for information leading to his capture. He has ties to metro Atlanta and remained a fugitive when the new charges were reported.
Cofield was serving more than 11 years for stealing $11 million from Hollywood producer Sidney Kimmel while confined in Georgia’s highest-security prison. Prosecutors said he used a contraband phone to impersonate Kimmel, purchase 6,106 gold coins, charter a plane to Atlanta and help buy a $4.4 million Buckhead mansion.
Himick, 43, previously served 10 years for supplying cocaine to members of a Miami street gang. A magistrate judge ordered him detained as a flight risk.
Federal law allows up to five years in prison for helping a convicted prisoner escape. Authorities have not said whether the defendants knew Cofield at Jesup or how the escape was allegedly arranged. The charges are allegations, and both defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
