ALFRED, Maine - Numerous questions remain unanswered following the Tuesday night arrest of David Hobson, who spent five days on the lam after escaping the Carroll County jail in Ossipee before he was apprehended Tuesday night outside a Market Basket in Rochester with $3,000 cash on him.

At a press conference Wednesday morning, police said they did not yet know where he got the money or several "narcotic" pills he also had.

Hobson apparently drove his grandmother's car, which he allegedly took without her permission from Sanford, Maine, to the supermarket on Milton Road and was about to get into another vehicle, driven by an unidentified man, when U.S. Marshals and Rochester police arrested him without incident.

Police said they took the vehicle's driver into custody, but released him.

"The investigation is still fluid as to how he got from point A to point B," said David Cargill, U.S. Marshal for New Hampshire.

Hobson is being held at the Carroll County jail and is being charged with escape, a felony. He is also expected to be charged with misdemeanor drug possession in Rochester.

Read all about it in Thursday editions of the New Hampshire Union Leader.

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Full text of earlier article continues below.NH escapee caught outside Rochester supermarket

ALFRED, Maine - Devin Laskey, assistant grocery manager at the nearby Market Basket, said a customer came in shortly after the arrest and described it to employees.

“None of my employees saw it, but there was a customer that came in and said there was a gentleman down on the ground being handcuffed,” Laskey said.

“I guess he was parked in the parking lot and as he got ready to take off, the U.S. marshal cornered him and stopped him,” he said.

Laskey said the customer told employees that Hobson had just gotten into his vehicle and was about to depart when the arrest occurred. He said he did not know if Hobson had been shopping at the grocery store before his arrest.

$1,000 reward

Authorities said the $1,000 reward — increased Tuesday from $500 — prompted 122 new tips.

The tipster, whose identity was not disclosed, will “absolutely” receive the $1,000 reward, White said.

Strafford County Sheriff Capt. Joseph DiGregorio said a vehicle was impounded following Hobson's arrest, but he did not know the make and model.

A news conference is planned for this morning at the Maine State Police barracks in Alfred, Maine, to discuss the Hobson case.

Hobson was initially held at the Strafford County jail, but Carroll County authorities were expected to take custody of him Tuesday night.

Police believe Hobson injured himself Thursday when he scaled the fence.

He left bloodied clothing behind and in a Toyota Highlander he allegedly stole from Wakefield before fleeing to Alfred, Maine.

He has family in the Alfred-Sanford area. Police had said Hobson was armed and dangerous, and they believe he was a threat to two unnamed persons against whom he holds a grudge.

On Tuesday before his capture, authorities worried he was likely growing fatigued and desperate.

Perimeter security

Meanwhile, the head of the Carroll County House of Corrections plans to enhance perimeter security at the jail, located off Route 171 on County Farm Road.

Jail Superintendent Jason Johnson said he plans to speak to the Carroll County Commissioners during their regular weekly meeting this morning at the county administrative building.

Johnson said the National Institute of Corrections assessed the facility and pointed out potential weaknesses in security.

“One of the areas they pointed out in the study is a deficiency in perimeter security and the fact that the recreation yards were not covered,” he said.

A perimeter fence of about 20 feet surrounds the county jail's recreation yard and is topped with razor wire. Johnson said county jails in Merrimack, Strafford, Cheshire and Grafton counties have recreation areas that are completely enclosed. All have roofs, and in some cases are encased as part of the main building.

“We'd want to do that in the future,” he said.

Johnson said he believed that original building plans for the jail included a covered recreation yard, but those plans may have been scaled back for costs.

Johnson said the recreation yard is closed until the security can be addressed.

The last successful escape from the jail was in November 2000. A male inmate pushed a corrections officer out of the way and ran out the back door of the old jail, Johnson said.

“We haven't had a successful escape since taking occupancy in the new facility” in November 2003, he said.