Man convicted of robbery in Sullivan County that escaped prison in 1984 returned to Tennessee

A man that was at one time on the FBI’s top 10 most wanted has been returned to Tennessee to serve the remainder of his life sentence for an armed robbery conviction in Sullivan County.

Lohman Ray Mays Jr., 77, along with two other inmates escaped the Turney Center Industrial Prison in 1984, and while searching for the escapees, two TDOC officials died in a helicopter crash. Mays Jr. was captured in 1985 in Wyoming and was serving time in that state for a federal bank robbery charge. State prison officials say Mays Jr. was returned to Tennessee on Tuesday.

The man has a lengthy criminal record across five states, with charges ranging from murder, robbery, and shooting and wounding a police officer.

Photo Courtesy: Tennessee Department of Corrections