HILLSBOROUGH, N.C. (WTVD) – The search for convicted murderer Ramone Alston, who escaped from custody in the parking lot of UNC Hospital’s Hillsborough campus on Tuesday morning, has entered a new phase.

Search officials said Wednesday afternoon that after more than 30 hours of searching, they could say with certainty that Alston was no longer in the immediate area and that people living there were not in immediate danger.

A total of 335 people from 19 different agencies helped search 1,335 acres around the Hillsborough medical facility. Officials said the coordinated ground search will phase out and transition into an investigation led by the North Carolina Department of Adult Correction (DAC).

The U.S. Marshals Service increased the reward for information leading to Alston’s capture by $10,000. The reward is now $35,000. A new phone number has been set up to forward tips to investigators focused on this case. The number is (919) 324-1082.

Tips and clues found during the search so far indicate Alston was north of the medical facility. However, after a second day of investigation, officials had found nothing. They said they are confident Alston is not within 5 miles of UNC Hospital’s Hillsborough campus.

Still, Orange County Sheriff Charles Blackwood said he was confident they would find Alston and take him back into custody.

“We feel good about this investigation … we are satisfied with the state of affairs,” he said.

He said investigators had two very good leads.

“I’ll tell you, we have two leads – I won’t tell you which ones – that we think are solid. Absolutely solid. And that’s a heads up for the people out there who know what’s going on and know they were involved. We know you and we’re coming to get you,” Blackwood said.

Blackwood said investigators have data suggesting that 80 percent of perpetrators in similar situations are caught within about a week within a 30-kilometer radius.

If and when Alston is caught, DAC said standard procedure would be to take him to a maximum security prison such as Raleigh Central Jail.

Blackwood said he did not believe anyone in the police force was involved in Alston’s escape. He said his officers had contacted some members of Alston’s family and described their cooperation as “variable.”

“Someone out there knows this was planned and they know who is involved,” Blackwood said.

As for Alston’s appearance, Blackwood said that Alston did indeed have dreadlocks that he tied back at the time of his escape. However, he may have since cut his hair or styled it differently. That’s one reason investigators have released several different pictures of Alston.

Two other lasting features of Alston’s appearance are a tattoo of the word “Flame” (flame) in dots across his chest with a star in the center of the word, and the word “Niece” (niece) on his right arm.

Blackwood went on to say that he went to school with Alston’s father and has known Alston his entire life.

“I have known Ramone since he was born. He was a problem child and has been involved in criminal activity since he was a teenager. He is extremely cautious, extremely dangerous and has nothing to lose,” the sheriff said.

The escape

Blackwood described the timing of Alston’s escape as follows:

03:56 am – Alston is transported from the blue building of the Bertie Correctional Institution to the intake section.
4:07 a.m. – Alston was secured and placed in a transport vehicle that then departed for UNC Hospital’s Hillsborough Campus.
6:50 a.m. – The transport vehicle arrived at the health facility and provided instructions on how to transport Alston to his appointment.
6:59 a.m. – Transport vehicle is driven to the rear of the building; officers prepare to open the door and escort Alston to his appointment.
7:00 a.m. – Alston storms out of the transport vehicle and starts running.
07:01 a.m. – Command informed of escape

The sheriff’s office said Alston managed to escape from the shackles while in a North Carolina Department of Adult Correction (DAC) vehicle in the hospital’s parking lot. The vehicle was a Chevrolet Traverse.

“When they (the officers) pulled up to the back entrance of the hospital and removed Mr. Alston from the vehicle, he broke free from the officers in the parking lot and ran into the woods,” said DAC Communications Director Keith Acree. The two officers were responsible for removing Alston from the vehicle and taking him to the hospital for treatment.

The two officers remained on duty on Wednesday.

“An internal personnel investigation will be initiated as that is our standard procedure following an escape incident,” Acree told ABC11 on Wednesday. “Our debriefing of the incident will consider all aspects of the event and opportunities for future improvement.”

Alston was at the medical facility for a procedure. Details of that procedure and the reason for Alston’s transfer from the Bertie County Jail to Hillsborough were not disclosed, but Blackwood said Tuesday he believes it had to do with continued treatment. Keith Acree, communications director for the DAC, confirmed that on Wednesday, saying Alston’s appointment was a follow-up with a health care provider who had previously treated him.

Blackwood said he saw surveillance video showing Alston’s escape from the medical facility parking lot, but he described the video as inadequate and not particularly helpful in determining all the details of Alston’s escape.

“The door opens, his foot hits the ground and then he’s out of the frame. So he was moving fast – faster than the camera could capture,” Blackwood said.

Alston is no stranger to the area, as he grew up here and the crime scene for which he is serving a life sentence is very close by.

Who is Ramone Alston?

Alston was found guilty of shooting 1-year-old Maleah Williams on Christmas Day 2015. The shooting occurred in Chapel Hill. Maleah’s mother told ABC11 at the time that the children were outside playing with their Christmas toys and she was holding her daughter when someone in the area started firing shots. She ran away when she realized a bullet had struck Maleah.

“We have no special feelings for Mr. Alston, we are just unhappy with the (Department of Public Safety) and its efforts to keep him in custody, or lack thereof. We wish Mr. Alston and his family nothing but peace, blessings and prosperity,” Maleah’s father, Shaquille Williams, said in a statement Tuesday.

Williams added that he was bothered by the fact that he “got out of his shackles in some way.”

Alston and another man, Pierre Je Bron Moore, reached a plea deal in 2019. Alston received a life sentence for the child’s murder and Moore received a sentence of 28 to 34 years in prison.

ABC11 has uncovered that Alston recently sought to have his sentence reduced. Records show Alston filed a motion for equitable relief in October 2023.

The 20-page document goes into the evidence and facts of his case, in which Alston claims the state used misleading evidence in his case. The motion was denied in May because a judge said Alston received a fair and full hearing and the claims in the motion for equitable compensation were without merit.