Escapees steal car on test drive

LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga., Jan. 20 (UPI) -- Police in Georgia said two men who failed to return a $6,000 car from a test drive were identified as a pair of escapees from South Carolina.

Authorities said Dameon Simpson, 34, and Kyle William Norris, 26, escaped from a pre-release work detail outside Florence, S.C., and the pair stole a sport-utility vehicle and fled to Georgia, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported Friday.

Investigators said the men went to Swanson Auto Buying Service in Lawrenceville Monday and took a $6,000 car for a test drive. The owner of the dealership, Kent Swanson, said he knew they wouldn't be returning when one of them called 15 minutes later to ask if the vehicle had GPS installed.

Officials said Simpson had been due to be released next year from a hit-and-run conviction, and Norris, whose crime was not specified by the Journal-Constitution, was due to be released in only six months.