WANTED Fugitive on the run after shots fired

Ashley Hunter
ECB Publishing, Inc.

As of 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 26, Earl has turned himself in to the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office and is no longer considered wanted.

It was an eventful start of the week for Jefferson County law enforcement on Monday, Nov. 25, when the Jefferson County 911 Dispatch Center received a report of shots being fired in the area of Roostertown, just outside the City of Monticello.
At 11:46 a.m., dispatchers received a call from concerned citizens regarding shots that had been fired near the vicinity of East Clark Avenue; within two minutes, deputies and police officers were on the scene and worked quickly to investigate the scene and secure a perimeter.Once it was evaluated that there were no injuries sustained during the shooting, the search for the suspect began.
Law enforcement quickly determined that the suspect was Marko Earl (also known as “Termite”), and that Earl had fled the scene while traveling on foot.

While deputies from the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office (JCSO) and officers with the Monticello Police Department established a perimeter, K9 officers from the Jefferson Correctional Institute and Florida Highway Patrol began to search for the fugitive.
While law enforcement officers had a photograph and physical description of Earl, the K9 officers and canines were not able to pick up on Earl's trail due to the heavy amount of traffic in the area.
As school is currently out in Jefferson County, the area had plenty of children – which both enhanced local law enforcement's need for quick action in finding Earl, as well as complicated the search. The high volume of additional foot traffic masked Earl's scent, making it harder for the K9 bloodhounds to trace.
Ultimately, the search was called off at around 2:25 p.m. without locating Earl.
The JCSO is continuing the investigation, however, and is asking for the community's help in locating this potentially dangerous suspect.
Marko Earl is a 26-years-old black male, who is approximately 5'10 and 197 pounds. He was last seen wearing a red hoodie with black sweatpants, and was armed with a handgun.
“If you see Earl or have any information on his location, please call 911 immediately, as he is considered armed and dangerous,” advised the JCSO in a release issued on the department's Facebook page.
Anyone with information pertaining to Earl's location is asked to either call 911 or the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office at (850) 997-2523.
Any information helps, no matter how small.