John Buckley

For the past week, investigators have been trying to figure out where John Buckley went after he removed his ankle monitor near his home off Georgetown Road. Today, they say they're getting a better picture of what happened after he left the Fayette County Circuit Court as a jury deliberated his fate.

Late last night, Georgetown Police say they discovered a car his mother had rented at the Walgreens on South Broadway. Spokespeople from the Fayette County Sheriff's Office tell WKYT Buckley's mother rented the car when she came to Lexington for her son's trial.

"It just gives us another piece of the puzzle. It lets us know which way this car traveled. A manager that I spoke to did tell me that he thought it was there on the 17th," said Deputy Bernard Palmer of the Fayette County Sheriff's Office.

This isn't the first time a man accused of a violent crime here in Lexington cut off his ankle monitor and went on the run. In fact, it happened as recently as 2010.

David Erwin was facing assault charges for stabbing his ex-girlfriend and a man she was on a date with. On the day he was set to plead guilty and while out of jail on bond, Erwin removed ankle monitor and took off. US Marshals arrested him a week later in Knoxville, Tennessee.

"For these violent offenders, they're different kinds of animals. They have nothing to lose by cutting and running and we're seeing that they do that a lot of times," said former Lexington Police detective Don Evans.

Buckley faces 20 years in prison on the sexual assault conviction. Investigators say they've received several tips about where Buckley could be and they say they're following up those leads.