Man charged in escape attempt, assault

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) - A man accused of attacking a Kent County Correctional Facility guard in an attempt to escape from jail now faces four charges in connection to the incident.

Willie Lee Wilson Williams was arraigned on charges of assaulting a prison employee, escape from jail through violence, assault with intent to murder and being a fourth-time habitual offender.

Williams allegedly attacked a female guard in the early morning hours of Sept. 14, slipping out of his medium-security cell and jumping her at the Grand Rapids facility. He allegedly beat the guard and choked her until she lost consciousness.

It was 10 minutes before any other guards were aware of the attack. Other inmates came to the guard's rescue, pulling Williams off her and using her radio to call other guards for help.

One of those inmates was resentenced from between 18 months and five years to time served for his role in helping the guard, though he remains incarcerated because he is wanted on charges out of Indiana.

Williams, 20, was in the jail on three counts of armed robbery in connection to several gas station robberies that all occurred on the night of July 26. He was arrested after a two-hour standoff on the morning after the crimes.

Bond for the four new charges was set at $500,000 cash surety. A preliminary hearing is set for Oct. 8.