“Little Houdini” back in the News

A crime wave across Tennessee and several southern states has led to two arrests and another well-known person to police possibly being involved. This crime wave involved the stealing of high-priced items in Coffee County and many other locations plus the possibility of even planning a jail break.
Manchester Police Chief Investigator Jackie Matheny told WMSR News that Miranda Jones, and Donald Wyatt Jr. were arrested in McMinnville.
A notorious man known as “Little Houdini” for ability for escaping from custody including Coffee County, Christopher Gay, and others are accused of stealing items such as a $260,000 motor home, a truck from a Stan McNabb dealership in Tullahoma, equipment from Tri-Green in Manchester plus items in other states. There is also a suspicion of even planning a jail break Virginia.
The so-called “Little Houdini” is known as a jailhouse escape artist, but now Matheny says he might have been the mastermind behind a multi-state crime ring that stole hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of merchandise. In January Gay was arrested in a stolen Corvette in Virginia. Where he is now in jail.
“It was really, just old-fashioned police work,” said Investigator Matheny. He bragged about the outstanding work done by Captain Dwight Vandergriff and Investigator Jonathan Anthony.
While searching Jones and Wyatt’s possessions police found a letter to a Virginia prison addressed to Christopher Gay and a hand drawn map of the Virginia jail holding Gay as though they were planning a jailbreak.
Gay is a habitual offender with a reputation for escaping from Tennessee jails, including escaping custody from a Coffee County deputy several years ago in Atlanta.
Police are working to return the stolen items to their owners.