Friends, family arrested for aiding New Orleans escaped inmates: report
Multiple people have been arrested for allegedly helping the 10 men who escaped from a jail in New Orleans, Louisiana, according to court documents reviewed by the Associated Press. These court documents showed that those who escaped had assistance from at least 15 people, before and after they fled Orleans Justice Center on May 16.
The AP said many of those accused of helping the inmates are family and friends who gave them food, money, transportation and shelter.
Search for 2 escapees continues
Eight of the ten inmates who escaped in what’s being called one of the largest jailbreaks in Louisiana history have been found. The two still on the lam, Antoine Massey, 32, and Derrick Groves, 27 , are considered armed and dangerous by New Orleans police. Groves was convicted with second-degree murder, and Massey is charged with domestic abuse and vehicle theft.
On Monday, May 26, police arrested Jermaine Donald, 42 and Leo Tate, 31 in Walker County, Texas, following a chase with multiple law enforcement agencies. Donald and Tate were initially charged with murder, weapons violations and burglary and now have more charges because of the escape.
The inmates escaped after removing a toilet, cutting steel bars and leaving through a hole in the wall. Photographs from authorities show graffiti above the toilet that said “To Easy Lol” and “We Innocent.”
Court records show aid received
Court records obtained by the Associated Press show that a former jail employee is accused of driving one of the escapees, Lenton Vanburen, to a relative’s home. That ex-jail employee, court documents said, helped VanBuren FaceTime his family. Another of his friends offered him a hiding place in a vacant apartment.
Vanburen, 26, was apprehended by police on Monday, May 26 in Baton Rouge. He had been sitting outside of a department store.
In other cases, police said, family and friends sent the escapees money through apps or lied to authorities when being interrogated.
Some of those accused are currently held on bonds $1 million or higher. Most are charged with accessory after the fact, which is a felony, according to the Associated Press.
Others who were written about in police reports looked at by the Associated Press are not yet facing charges.
Around 200 law enforcement officers are looking for the two escapees. A top City Hall official speaking to the Times-Picayune anonymously said New Orleans’ government could spend almost half a million dollars on the search. On Thursday, May 29, the reward for tips leading to the fugitive was bumped up to $50,000.
Ella Rae Greene, Editor In Chief
