Body of prisoner transport van driver found in river (PHOTOS)

EBRO — Search teams have recovered the body of the prisoner transport van driver from the Choctawhatchee River after he was killed in a wreck on a bridge at the Walton-Washington County line early Tuesday.

The body of Lislie Jacques, 58, of Harmony, Fla., was found in the river about 2:30 p.m. Wednesday just south of the Olan Rex Ferguson Bridge on State Road 20.

For more photos of the scene, click here.

Jacques was driving a van owned by United States Group 7 Protection Services when he crashed into a Ford F-350 pickup truck about 5:30 a.m. Tuesday, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.

Jacques, who wasn’t wearing a seat belt, was thrown form the van, over a guardrail and into the river.

Jacques was driving two prisoners to Bay County and Hernando County to face charges. Jacques’ wife, 58-year-old Pauline Jacques, was sitting in the van’s passenger seat, according to an FHP news release.

Divers searched for the body from 6 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tuesday and resumed the search at 8 a.m. Wednesday.

“The boys are back out,” Freeport Fire Chief Ben Greenslait said before Jacques’ body was found. “We’ll be doing grid searching today so we can hopefully find him.”

The Walton County Sheriff’s Office used its helicopter to help search for the body. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission also assisted.

The FHP said soon after the wreck that the driver was presumed dead, but did not release his name until after his body was found. Lt. Steven Preston said that is standard policy.

The two prisoners in the van, who also weren’t wearing seat belts, suffered minor injuries. None of the three people in the pickup truck was wearing a seat belt, but none of them were hurt.

It is not yet known whether Jacques was under the influence of alcohol.

Possible charges are pending an FHP investigation.

See the story unfold

9 a.m. —

EBRO — First responders are back on the scene searching for the body of the driver of a prisoner transport vehicle. The man as ejected into the Choctawhatchee River after an early-morning wreck Tuesday.

According to Freeport Fire Chief Ben Greenslait, dive teams and boats deployed at 8 a.m. in an effort to find the body of the United States Guard 7 driver.

"The boys are back out," Greenslait said. "We'll be doing grid searching today so we can hopefully find him."

Walton County Sheriff's Office has their helicopters searching as well as boats in the water. and Freeport Fire and Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission are assisting.

Authorities were on scene at the Walton-Washington County line on State Road 20 where the accident took place from 6 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tuesday searching. Florida Highway Patrol has not released his identity.

6 p.m. —

EBRO — Authorities have suspended their search for the driver of a private prisoner transport van who was presumed dead after the van collided with a pickup truck Tuesday morning.

The driver, who remains unidentified, was ejected from the van, the Florida Highway Patrol said. Responders searched for a body in the Choctawhatchee River, which runs below the bridge where the accident occurred on State Road 20.

The search was suspended Tuesday evening and will resume 8 a.m. Wednesday, according to an FHP news release.

4:30 p.m. —

EBRO — The driver of a private prisoner transport service van is presumed dead after a Tuesday morning accident on a bridge over the Choctawhatchee River near the Walton-Washington county line.

The driver’s identity has not been released by the Florida Highway Patrol, which is investigating the accident.

The man had been driving eastbound on the Olan Rex Ferguson Bridge on State Road 20 about 5:30 a.m. when he crossed the center line and struck the side of an F-350 pickup truck driven by Boris D. Peterson of Vernon, Fla.

The impact pushed the United States Group 7 Protective Services van into the guardrail, ejecting the driver. He is presumed dead, according to the Florida Highway Patrol media release.

Divers worked the scene throughout the day, searching the murky waters of the river for his body. Agencies assisting with the search were the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, Walton County Sheriff’s Office, Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office, Jackson County Sheriff’s Office and Walton County Fire and Rescue.

There were four passengers in the van, including at least two prisoners, according to the report. None were seriously injured, though two were taken to Bay County Medical Center.

The transport van was headed to Bay County Annex, said FHP Lt. Steve Preston.

Two passengers who were identified as prisoners had minor injuries.

Alisha L. Jackson, who is 20, had been headed to the Bay County Jail Annex when the wreck happened. She was released from the hospital and had been taken to the jail by midday, said Ruth Corley, public affairs specialist with Bay County Sheriff's Office.

Jackson was en route from Tift County, Ga., to Bay County Jail on charges of failure to appear on criminal use of personal identification and violation of pretrial intervention on dealing in stolen property charges, Corley said.

Tift County Jail officials said Jackson was picked up at 11:45 EST for transport.

The person who answered the phone at USG7 said no one was available to talk. Phone calls to the company, which is headquartered in Lakeland, Fla., have not been returned.

The other female inmate, Angela D. Goddard, who is 33, was headed for Hernando County, Corley said.

Another USG7 employee, Pauline Jacques, was in the front seat of the van. The Harmony, Fla., woman had minor injuries but was not taken to the hospital.

Rolando Brown, who is 22, was a rear passenger in the van. He was uninjured. No details were available on him.

Peterson, who was driving the pickup truck, and his passenger, 31-year-old Ariane Andrews, also of Vernon, were uninjured.

It is not known whether alcohol was a factor in the crash, according to the FHP report.

Jacques was the only person wearing a seatbelt in either vehicle, the report said.

1 P.M. UPDATE:

WALTON COUNTY — Authorities have confirmed that one man is dead after a two-vehicle accident on a bridge involving a private prisoner transport service van and an F-350 pick-up truck.

Initial reports indicate that the man driving the van was ejected and went over the edge of the Olan Rex Ferguson Bridge into the Choctawhatchee River.

Conflicting reports have come from the scene on whether the man's body has been found in the river. However, a witness said that the body did not enter the water intact.

Water conditions are murky, which is delaying the investigation.

The two vehicles collided at about 5:30 a.m., which caused the transport vehicle to strike the guard rail and eject the driver, according to Lt. Steve Preston with the Florida Highway Patrol.

The USG7 transport van, which was from a company based out of Lakeland, Fla., was headed to Bay County, Preston said.

The two prisoners were in the van were injured. Initial reports indicated the prisoners were taken to Bay County Medical Center, one by ambulance and the other by a patrol car. Their conditions are not known.

Bay County Sheriff's public affairs specialist Ruth Corley confirmed one of the inmates, Alisha Jackson, was headed for Bay County Jail Annex.

Jackson was en route from Tift County, Ga., to Bay County Jail on charges of failure to appear on criminal use of personal identification and violation of pretrial intervention on dealing in stolen property charges, Corley said.

She has been treated and released from the hospital and is currently in Bay County Jail.

Tift County Jail officials said Jackson was picked up at 11:45 Eastern time by a USG7 van. USG7 is a private prisoner transport company based out of Lakeland, Fla.

The person who answered the phone at USG7 said no one was available to talk.

The other female inmate was headed for Hernando County, Corley said.

Witnesses said the pick-up driver appeared to be fine.  

The accident happened on State Road 20 near the Olan Rex Ferguson Bridge, which is near the Walton-Washington county line near Ebro.

Florida Highway Patrol out of Washington County is investigating the accident.

Check back for more details.