OCHLOCKNEE, Ga. (WTXL) — Thomas County Sheriff's Office says Tyler Henderson surrendered himself to US Marshalls at about 2:30 p.m. Sunday afternoon.
Henderson is accused of shooting at three Thomas County deputies, hitting two.
Thomas County Captain Steve Jones said the capture is a relief to the community.
"My phone has been going off nonstop since news broke of this. The community is relieved. I went to get coffee and people were cheering, they were so happy we had caught this guy," he said.
After six days of searching mostly in Ochlocknee and Meigs for Tyler Henderson, it was help from his family that ended the search.
"Our investigators and US Marshalls have been in contact with several family members, which is what broke it. They were able to talk some sense into him and get him to turn himself in."
TCSO said late Monday night into Tuesday morning, three deputies tried to serve an arrest warrant for Henderson.
After a scuffle with the deputies, TCSO said Henderson took one of their guns. They say he shot at all three, hitting one in the bulletproof vest and another under the vest.
Two of the deputies are at home. The other is slated to be discharged from the hospital Monday or Tuesday.
"That situation they were in is one you can go your entire career and never be in a situation like that. it's very taxing mentally, emotionally. It's draining physically. I can't imagine what it was like. We're offering these guys all the support they need and all the time they need."
The manhunt was an all-hands-on-deck effort. Agencies throughout North Florida and all over Georgia assisted in the search.
"A lot of these agencies didn't call and say 'Can we help you?' They called and said 'We're on the way to help you.' That means a lot."
Captain Jones says he's lost count of the number of agencies that showed up. At some points, the search team had more than 100 law enforcement officers searching. He says many pulled back-to-back day-long shifts.
They also received numerous tips. TCSO initially placed a $5,000 reward for any tip that could lead to Henderson's arrest. That number doubled to $10,000 days into the search.
Initially, law enforcement believed Henderson may have had help, but that has changed.
"We're not sure to what extent he had help. We think it had been very little help."
Henderson faces three counts of aggravated assault on a police officer, three counts of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and use of a firearm during the commission of a crime.
Thomas County Sheriff Carlton Powell says the focus now is "On getting the deputies back to 100%." TCSO is now in the process of starting a fundraiser for them. We'll update you on that when we get more information. They'll also have a debrief later this week to get a tally on the number of tips and assistance throughout the search.
