Escapee Sought in Manhunt

TULARE — Authorities searched for a second escapee Thursday after capturing a San Diego man who fled from authorities outside a Tulare courthouse.

Sheriff’s deputies ended part of their manhunt Wednesday by arresting Lance Eric Garza, 22, during a traffic stop in Visalia. Authorities had tracked him to the neighborhood after a tip. Garza had escaped earlier in the day with Rickey Joe Dixon, 23, of La Jolla as the two were being led off an inmates’ bus outside the Tulare-Pixley Municipal Court. Both had been scheduled for court hearings on several charges, including attempted murder.

Dixon, who uses the alias David Lee Taylor, remained at-large Thursday, authorities said.

Lt. Gary Harris said the duo likely plotted details of their escape since they fled in a stolen pickup truck conveniently parked near the courthouse. A change of clothes was waiting in the truck, Harris said.

“We think it was part of an escape plan,” he said. “The whole incident appears to have been planned.”

Detectives hadn’t figured out how the men escaped from handcuffs and leg irons while inside the bus.

The two escapees along with Brian Ash, 27, of Exeter and Milton Neto, 23, of San Diego were first arrested last Friday after a robbery in Tulare and two separate high-speed pursuits.