According to authorities, ten inmates made a daring nocturnal escape from a New Orleans jail on Friday by climbing a wall and escaping through a hole beneath a toilet when the only guard assigned to their cell pod was out getting dinner.
Following the breakout, which the local sheriff claims may have been assisted by department staff, seven of the escapees—including individuals accused of murder—remain at large.
During a news conference, the media was shown surveillance footage of the escapees running out of the prison, some dressed in orange and others in white.
Some of them were observed running across the neighbouring interstate and into a neighbourhood after scaling a fence and using blankets to protect themselves from barbed wire.
The men escaped through a hole behind a toilet in a cell, as seen in a photo taken by law authorities. “To Easy LoL” and an arrow pointing at the opening are among the scribbled remarks above the entrance.
For hours, no one noticed the ten men’s absence, who also used facility flaws that officials had long lamented in their escape. Law enforcement didn’t find out about the escape until over seven hours later, during a regular morning headcount.
No deputy was present at the pod where the fugitives had been detained, according to sheriff’s office officials. They said that a civilian technician who was there to watch the pod had left to buy supper.
One of the males, 20-year-old Kendall Myles, was captured shortly after the escape following a quick foot pursuit through the French Quarter. He had already made two escapes from juvenile prison facilities.
Two more fugitives had been apprehended by Friday night. According to the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office, authorities discovered 21-year-old Robert Moody in New Orleans as a result of a Crimestoppers tip. On the social media site X, Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill reported that Dkenan Dennis had been located close to the Chef Menteur Highway.
Sheriff points the finger at “defective locks” and potential inside assistance
The males were able to leave the Orleans Justice Centre due to “defective locks,” according to Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson.
According to Hutson, she has been complaining to officials about the locks on a regular basis and has even just this week pushed for funding to repair the failing infrastructure.
According to Hutson, there are signs that the fugitives were assisted in their escape by members of her department.
Regarding the jail, which houses 1,400 inmates, she stated, “It’s almost impossible, not completely, but almost impossible for anybody to get out of this facility without help.”
Around one in the morning, the escapees broke through a door and entered the cell with the hole.
The Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office said in a statement Friday night that at least one of the steel bars guarding plumbing fixtures “appeared to have been intentionally cut using a tool.”
After leaving the facility, the men took off their jail uniforms, and authorities claimed it is still unknown how some of them were able to get civilian clothes so fast.
It wasn’t until 8:30 a.m. that authorities realised the men were missing. At a news conference on Friday afternoon, authorities stated that one individual believed to have escaped was in a separate cell, despite their original claim that eleven had escaped.
Until the investigation’s conclusion, three employees have been placed on suspension. Whether any of the staff members were accused of aiding in the escape was not immediately apparent.
Additionally, authorities could not specify whether the guard who went to obtain food was one of the three suspended.
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The fugitives
The age range of the escapees is 19–42 years old. The men are mostly in their twenties.
Derrick Groves, one of the fugitives, was found guilty last year on two counts of second-degree murder and two counts of attempted second-degree murder for his involvement in the shootings of two men on Mardi Gras Day in 2018.
According to court documents, he is also charged with violence on a staff member at a correctional facility. Authorities cautioned that he might try to track down witnesses for the murder trial.
Corey Boyd, another escapee, had entered a not guilty plea to a pending charge of second-degree murder.
According to Hutson, the police department was aggressively searching for the fugitives in coordination with federal, state, and local law enforcement organisations.
According to Bryan LaGarde, executive director of Project NOLA, a group that runs more than 5,000 cameras throughout New Orleans, police used face recognition technology to identify and apprehend one fugitive.
After entering the escapees’ photos into the system, his organization—which collaborates with Louisiana authorities—shortly located two in the French Quarter.
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They were strolling freely down the road. They were looking over their shoulder and keeping their heads down. “The other fugitive walked out of sight of the cameras,” LaGarde added.
Local and state officials criticise jail officials
“This represents a complete failure of the most basic responsibilities entrusted to a sheriff or jail administrator,” stated Jason Williams, the district attorney for Orleans Parish.
He criticised the sheriff’s office for failing to alert the public and authorities to the escape for several hours. “These inexcusable failures have put lives in danger.”
The escape was deemed “beyond unacceptable” by the state’s attorney general, Murrill, who also claimed that local officials were too slow to notify the public. She claimed to have notified neighbouring states about the escape.
Superintendent of the New Orleans Police Department Anne Kirkpatrick stated that her department is collaborating with the FBI and U.S. marshals and has made “a full court effort” to respond to the escape.
Officers concentrated on finding and protecting anyone who might have testified in their cases or who might be in danger. According to Kirkpatrick, one family has been “removed” from their house.
“If there is anyone helping or harboring these escapees, you will be charged,” Kirkpatrick continued.
