Two men were taken in for questioning Friday afternoon in connection with an assault Thursday night on South Road during which a man was allegedly beaten with a tire iron, but Chief Deputy Mike Lambert said the sole suspect, Skylar Rolin, is still at large.

Hunter Colbert and Randy Fretwell Jr. were questioned by Escambia County Sheriff’s deputies about the crime, but Lambert said they were only classified as persons of interest and were not suspects.

Ned Bishop, 31, was taken by Atmore Ambulance to Atmore Community Hospital Thursday where he was taken by Lifeflight to a nearby hospital, according to Bishop’s brother, Joe Casey.

Casey and Bishop’s mother, Lilly Casey, said three men attacked the man, one hitting him repeatedly with a tire iron while another man brandished a gun.

Lilly Casey said the three men had been “hanging around” the empty home owned by another of her sons for most of the day, ignoring her requests for them to leave.

“They were smoking pot and drinking and throwing beer cans in the yard,” she said. “I asked them to leave and they said they weren’t going anywhere.”

Casey said the men attacked her son in front of her and then fled the scene in a three-toned, four door truck.

Rolin  remains unaccounted for and no charges have been filed nor has the use of a weapon of any kind been verified.

Anyone with any information concerning this case is asked to call the Escambia County Sheriff’s Department at (251) 867-0304 or Atmore Police Department at (251) 368-9141.