DOVER, Ky. — The search for one of two inmates who escaped the Brown County jail in Ohio ended late Monday night when he was apprehended by the FBI in Louisville, according to a statement posted to the Mason County Sheriff's Office Facebook page.
Law enforcement officials spent days searching for Jerry Cooper in Mason County, Kentucky, hunkered down in a wooded area outside of Dover.
However, on Monday evening, authorities announced he was found in Louisville and apprehended by an FBI team there. The Mason County Sheriff stated that Cooper left the Mason County area that morning and was picked up at some point on Monday, then transported to Louisville by Marlana and William Strausbaugh.
WATCH: What we know about how investigators pieced together Cooper's location and arrested him
The Strausbaughs have been arrested for second-degree hindering prosecution or apprehension and second-degree escape under complicity. They may also face other federal charges. The couple is being held in custody at the Mason County Detention Center, according to the sheriff.
"We received a tip that [Cooper] had a cell phone and made a call, we believe, from the wooded area. Through that, we were able to find his accomplices," Mason County Sheriff Ryan Swolsky said. "Fortunately, we were able to track them on their way back from Louisville, and that's where, on their way back, we apprehended them."
Swolsky said shortly after arresting the Strausbaughs, Cooper was arrested by FBI Louisville.
"It was definitely a sigh of relief. Jerry Lee Cooper was a threat to the safety of the commonwealth, and we did our best to fix that," FBI Louisville Special Agent in Charge Olivia Olson said. "I put some agents out on the ground in that vicinity [of Louisville] and we were able to locate him."
Cooper is being held at the Oldham County Jail, in La Grange, Ky., which is near Louisville. He is scheduled to be arraigned on Wednesday morning, according to court documents.
The arrest on Monday marked the culmination of a week-long manhunt, expending plenty of resources and exhausting law enforcement.
"I've got a newborn. Several guys have young children, but at the end of the day, our priority is serving and protecting our citizens, and that's what we did," Sheriff Swolsky said. "I think we did the best that we could have done given our the very challenging circumstances."
The Mason County Sheriff's Office posted a video update on social media Saturday evening and said law enforcement were searching around the clock, but it had been a difficult process.
"We have been out here nonstop ever since there was a sighting of him in Mason County," said Mason County Sheriff Ryan Swolsky in the video. "It's very challenging, it's a very challenging search. We're looking at over 1,200 acres of very dense woodland."
The Mason County Sheriff's Office said Friday that police believed they had Cooper contained in a large wooded area just outside of Dover, between Tuckahoe Road and Lee's Creek Road.
Swolsky said law enforcement exhausted all resources available to them in the search for Cooper, but the densely wooded area made some tools, like thermal imaging, difficult to use. Many of the officers searching for Cooper had been out in the area non-stop and had not been home with their families, Swolsky said.
"We are extremely exhausted, but we are not going to stop our efforts," said Swolsky. "Again, we are trying to cover over 1,200 acres of his hunting land. This is where he grew up. He knows every inch of this property and there are several areas that he's able to hide in. The woods are so dense, even at night, that we cannot penetrate them with thermal imaging, or at least it's very hard to do that."
The sheriff's office said it believed Cooper was armed with a rifle and "presents a major threat" for investigators searching for him in the densely wooded area. Cooper is accused of attempted murder, felonious assault and having weapons under disability.
The FBI announced on Monday that it is offering a $10,000 reward for any information that leads to Cooper's arrest.
We spoke with Zach Haney, Master Trooper with Kentucky State Police, who confirmed there was another sighting of Cooper Friday morning. Haney said police are trying their best to contain the wooded area Cooper is believed to be in, which is difficult considering it spans several acres.
Haney confirmed a tip was called in regarding a sighting of Cooper near the railroad tracks Thursday morning. Later that evening, Haney said, a trail camera caught a picture of Cooper within woods along Mary Ingles Highway. According to Haney, Cooper could have crossed without being seen due to the terrain of the area, which includes creeks going under the roadway.
"He could've easily crossed under the road without us seeing him and got to the other side and got up into the hills," Haney said.
According to Haney, both the terrain in the area and the heat make the search challenging.
"There were spots yesterday that the sheriff himself had to get down and crawl to get through," Haney said.
Hear what officials said Friday about Cooper and the search to find him:
Authorities say Cooper and Roy Butler escaped the night of September 15 after damaging a security window, which allowed them to escape through the police impound lot. At some point, they crossed the Ohio River on a paddleboat and split up on Tuesday morning. Law enforcement captured Butler that morning.
On Wednesday, it was a much different-looking search for Cooper as we saw no helicopters in the air or law enforcement patrolling the Ohio River. Mason County Sheriff's deputies and Kentucky State Police troopers were patrolling Dover. We saw deputies speaking with neighbors, going door-to-door, asking questions and inspecting a barn in the neighborhood. But still, there was no sign of the escaped inmate.
The Mason County Sheriff's Office tells us they've received several tips about Cooper's whereabouts throughout their search.
Ruscoe Gordley, a Dover resident, told us law enforcement was searching outside of his home Tuesday. We asked him about his biggest concern as time goes on.
WATCH: What officials, nearby residents say as an escaped inmate remains on the run
"I'm worried about my grandchildren, they've all been up behind, up on the hill, behind my grandkids' house, I'm just worried about them," said Gordley.
Mason County Chief Deputy Colten Linville explained to WCPO on Tuesday why authorities were concentrating their search in the Mason County area.
"He's got friends that have been down this way in the past and people that he's ran with," said Linville.
In addition, officers are using heat seeking technology to aid in the search for Cooper. Unfortunately, it's not perfect. Dirt mounds and rocks that sit in the sun all day collecting heat appear as heat sources, which adds to the number of spots that officers need to inspect.
Law enforcement told WCPO 9 News that if they find that anyone helped or is aiding Cooper while he's wanted, those people will face charges.
