Michael David Elliot.jpg

Michael David Elliot

(Provided)

UPDATE: Police confirm Michael David Elliot has been arrested in LaPorte, Ind. tonight.

IONIA, MI — A nationwide search is underway for convicted murderer Michael David Elliot, who fled to Indiana Sunday night after escaping from the maximum security Ionia Correctional Facility.

Elliot was able to flee the state after taking a woman hostage in Ionia with a box cutter, and taking her and her 2004 Jeep Liberty to Indiana.

Michigan State Police are working with Indiana State Police and the U.S. Marshals service to hunt for Elliot, who was serving a life sentence at the time of his escape.

The escape

• Investigators said Elliot was housed in a Level II security at the Ionia prison, which houses Level II and Level V prisoners (the latter being the most secure). He was discovered missing during a routine check Sunday night, and police say they believe he escaped around 6 p.m. or 7 p.m.

• Officials believe Elliot acted alone. "This was entirely a one-man operation," said Michigan Department of Corrections Director Daniel Heyns.

• Elliot was wearing a white kitchen uniform at the time of his escape. Officials say Elliot was not assigned to the kitchen, but also downplayed the garb's role in his escape.

• Heyns told The Associated Press that Elliot escaped by creating holes at the bottoms of two perimeter fences. Heyns earlier told media that prison officials already have addressed some issues that allowed for the escape.

• Heyns declined to share more information on security mechanisms in place at the facility, though the Michigan corrections website lists "double fences, razor wire, (video) monitoring systems and a perimeter detection system" among those at state prisons.

• State officials have denied that budget or staffing woes contributed to Elliot's escape.

• Gas station surveillance captured Elliot when the pair stopped for gas in Middlebury, Ind. His hostage reportedly locked herself in a bathroom, and Elliot fled the scene. The woman was unharmed, but visibly shaken, according to a clerk at the gas station.

More after the gallery

Prison escape in Ionia 9 Gallery: Prison escape in Ionia

The hunt

• Police in Shipshewana, Ind., found the vehicle used by Elliot, and put nearby schools on lockdown as they went door to door looking for him.

• Michigan State Police Lt. Troy Allen said the agency is working with Indiana State Police and the U.S. Marshals service to hunt for Elliot.

• Update 12:10 p.m. Nashville, Tenn., police issued a "be on the lookout" alert for Elliot, who may have family in the area. TV news stations also reported police were investigating a possible sighting.

• Police urge anyone who spots Elliot to not take matters into their own hands, and to phone 911 immediately.

About Elliot

• Elliot was serving life in prison for four counts of first-degree murder, arson and entering without breaking. The killings occurred Aug. 8, 1993, in Gladwin County, authorities said.

• It took a jury only 90 minutes to convict Elliot of the killings, which were revealed during his trial to be the result of an attempt to rob the victims of drug money.

• One of Elliot's co-defendants testified that laughed about shooting his victims in the back of their heads, according to court records.

• Despite the morbid details, Elliot's former defense attorney recalled his client as "cordial" and "very polite." ""Interestingly enough — this has never happened before or since — one of the jurors caught me out in the parking lot," attorney Gerald White said. "He said, 'We're sorry we had to convict him.'"

Related: From crime to conviction: A timeline of Ionia prison escapee Michael D. Elliot

• Heyns said Elliot had a "clean" prison record, but also was deemed high risk for attempted escape because of his life sentence.

Key locations

The following map plots key locations, from Elliot's escape to subsequent sightings in Indiana and police alerts in Nashville, Tenn.