RANKIN COUNTY, Miss. (WJTV) – The man who was convicted of killing two women in Mississippi before leading authorities on a nationwide manhunt was found deceased at a state prison.

Rankin County Coroner David Ruth said Alex Deaton was found deceased at the Central Mississippi Correctional Facility (CMCF) on Saturday, June 14. His body was transported to the State Medical Examiner’s Office for an autopsy.

Deaton was sentenced to life in prison in connection to the deaths of his girlfriend, Heather Robinson, in Rankin County and Brenda Pinter in Neshoba County. He pled guilty in both cases.

Investigators said Deaton strangled Robinson in February 2017, stole her SUV and then shot and wounded a jogger near her home. They said Deaton then traveled to Neshoba County and killed Pinter. Her body was found inside Dixon Baptist Church.

Deaton led law enforcement on a manhunt across the country. He carjacked a couple in New Mexico and shot one person during the crime. Investigators said he drove to Kansas where he stole a store clerk’s car at gunpoint. He was apprehended after a chase near Pratt, Kansas.