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U.S.|Louisiana Seeks Escaped Inmates, and Answers About Their Brazen Escape
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/19/us/new-orleans-louisiana-jail-escape.html
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The manhunt for six men, including some accused of violent crimes, has alarmed the city and brought new attention to New Orleans’s troubled jail.
By Rick Rojas
Rick Rojas covers the American South and reported from Atlanta.
May 19, 2025Updated 8:54 p.m. ET
The first of the escaped inmates was chased through the French Quarter, not even two miles from the New Orleans city jail. He was caught several hours after he and nine other inmates had fled the jail through a hole in a cell wall.
The second was tracked down not long after, through a call to a tip line. A third was found on the other side of the city, arrested at the end of the first day following their brazen escape.
Nearly three days passed before investigators had another breakthrough: On Monday evening, a fourth man was taken into custody in New Orleans. The delay underscored some of the obstacles investigators face four days into a manhunt that has alarmed and captivated New Orleans, with six men yet to be found.
The jailbreak has drawn attention because of a daring run that included crossing Interstate 10 on foot and a taunting misspelled message left behind: “to easy LOL.” It has also brought new scrutiny on the Orleans Parish jail, a long-troubled facility with a history of poor conditions and insufficient oversight of inmates.
Investigators said they had received intelligence on all of the escaped inmates, who ranged from 19 to 42 and were being held on charges including murder, attempted murder, armed robbery and carrying illegal weapons. But their pursuit has resulted in dead ends and tips that have gotten the authorities close — but not close enough.
“We end up getting there just a little too late,” Col. Robert P. Hodges, the superintendent of the Louisiana State Police, said in a news conference on Sunday evening. Officials suggested the inmates might be getting help from friends and relatives.
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