A manhunt that forced three Whitemarsh Island schools to lock down for several hours ended just after noon Wednesday when police captured an accused child molester hiding in marshland in a nearby upscale neighborhood.
Savannah-Chatham police surrounded the Long Point neighborhood and adjacent areas along Johnny Mercer Boulevard after officers saw 40-year-old James Dover flee on foot into a wooded area inside the gated community about 8:30 a.m.
Dover, who was living in a duplex farther down Johnny Mercer on Wilmington Island, has been charged by Port Wentworth police with the aggravated molestation of a 13-year-old girl.
He’ll likely face additional charges from Savannah-Chatham police, said Capt. John Best, the department’s Islands Precinct commander.
Within an hour of the police sighting of Dover, Chatham-Savannah School Campus Police Chief Ulysses Bryant, as a precaution, locked down Islands High, Marshpoint Elementary and Coastal Middle schools, all located within about a mile of Long Point.
Parents of children at the affected schools were notified by voice mail service of the situation, said schools spokesman Kurt Hetager, who did not return telephone calls from the Savannah Morning News as the situation evolved.
The schools returned to normal about 12:15 p.m. after Savannah-Chatham police notified Bryant of Dover’s capture.
Port Wentworth Police on Tuesday issued a public advisory that they were searching for Dover and indicated he should be “considered dangerous.”
Dover has been convicted of crimes in Chatham County including armed robbery and aggravated assault. Georgia Department of Corrections records show he was released from the Jefferson County Prison in October 2012 after completing a 10-year sentence.
Best said his officers — aided by personnel from the Port Wentworth and Thunderbolt police departments, Chatham County Sheriff’s deputies, and U.S. Marshals — took every possible precaution to ensure Dover did not escape Wednesday. They operated under the assumption, based on evidence from searching Dover’s residence and previous statements he’d made to investigators, that the suspect “did not want to be taken alive,” Best said.
Dover admitted to arresting officers he’d tried Tuesday to kill himself with carbon monoxide and had attempted to drown himself in the marsh as police closed in, Best said.
“We were concerned he’d hurt himself or he might harm others,” Best said. “So we set up the perimeter and used a lot of assets — our aviation unit, multiple K-9 officers — and did what we could to make sure we took him into custody at this time.”
A K-9 officer and a detective from the department’s Special Victims Unit found Dover, weakened from fleeing and the two suicide attempts, hiding in the marshland behind a Long Point home.
The suspect, who was unarmed, was taken into custody without further incident, Best said. He was checked out by paramedics and transported to the Chatham County jail.
“It was a long search, and we’re glad we held the perimeter and we’re glad that (Dover’s) in custody,” Best said about thirty minutes after Dover’s arrest. “He’s got (an extensive) criminal history; he’s no stranger to us, so we had to make sure we got him. We got a lot of good compliance on this from (the public) and other agencies and we’re thankful for all of their help.”
Reporter Jenel Few contributed to this story.