Officials in North Carolina are searching for an inmate convicted of killing a 1-year-old girl after he escaped while being taken to a medical facility Tuesday in Hillsborough, North Carolina. Alston was convicted of first-degree murder in 2018 and sentenced to life behind bars, according to the North Carolina Department of Adult Correction. The department said in a statement that Alston arrived about 7 a.m. Tuesday in a prison transport van to the University of North Carolina Medical Center's gastroenterology unit, where he had a medical appointment. Keith Acree, communications director for the Department of Adult Correction, told NBC affiliate WRAL of Raleigh that Alston was wearing a waist chain and handcuffs when he fled. Authorities established a perimeter covering at least a one-mile radius around the location of the escape, the Department of Adult Correction said.

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Persons: Ramone Alston, Maleah Williams, Alston, Keith Acree, Acree, WRAL Organizations: North Carolina Department of Adult, Bertie Correctional, University of North Carolina Medical Center's gastroenterology, Department, Adult, NBC, Sheriff's Office, Authorities Locations: North Carolina, Hillsborough , North Carolina, Chapel Hill, Windsor, Raleigh, The Orange, Hillsborough