While the authorities in Louisiana continue their hunting at five of the 10 detainees who left a New Orleans prison this month, seven people were accused of helping the escapees, both in domestic prison and once in general.
The officials said that from the start, the escape was strategically planned and that the fugitives had had aid. The growing number of arrests gives a new overview of how the planned and large -scale jailbreak may have been developed.
“As I promised when we launched our investigation, we will absolutely hold all those who contributed to any role to the penitentiary break in New Orleans,” said the prosecutor general of Louisiana, Liz Murrill, in a statement, announcing the last alleged accomplice in escape.
Investigators continue to paint through prison communications, including telephone recordings, and believe that other prisoners or employees incarcerated could cope with additional costs For their role in the assistance in the exhaust of May 16 and a possible initial concealment in the hours which followed the jailbreak, a source with direct knowledge of the investigation told CNN this weekend.
Sunday evening, the authorities arrested and charged seven people who would have helped the 10 detainees before and in the hours that followed their escape.
Here is what we know so far.
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Trevon Williams23 years old, is accused of having helped escape. According to Murrill, he was already detained in a New Orleans prison for unrelated accusations when the investigators learned his alleged involvement. Williams faces 10 chiefs of director of a simple escape, but the officials did not detail how they believe that he was involved in the jailbreak.
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Sterling Williams33 years old, a prison maintenance worker was arrested for suspicion of having helped the escapees by turning off the water to the cell where they disconnected the plumbing to escape, according to Murrill. Williams said inmate Antoine Massey – one of the escapes still at free – had threatened to say if he did not deactivate water, according to a affidavit. Williams’ lawyer said he was “fully convinced” of his client’s innocence.
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Emmitt Weber28 years is the most recent arrest of the investigation by Jailbreak. He faces an accusation of accessories after a simple escape, the New Orleans police service announced on Friday in a press release.
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Connie Weeden59, is accused of Shipping money via a mobile phone application to the escape of Jermaine Donald. Weeden was arrested in Slidell, about 30 miles northeast of New Orleans, said the state of Louisiana. She faces a chief of accusation of accessories afterwards, who is the possibility of a fine of up to $ 500 and up to five years in prison.
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Corvanntay Baptiste38 years old, would be in contact with Escapee Corey Boyd via social media and by phone. She also helped him make food while he was hiding, according to Police from the State of Louisiana. Baptiste was accused of an accessory chief afterwards.
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Cortnie Harris32 years old, is accused of being in contact with one of the escapes who remains disappeared. She also helped transport two missing fugitives to “several locations in New Orleans”, according to Police from the State of Louisiana. Harris is accused of an accessory chief afterwards.
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Casey Smith30 years old, is accused of Help at least two escape In the hours that followed the jailbreak, according to New Orleans police. The police located Smith in a residence in the third district, where the police said they admitted its role in the transport of fugitives, with Cortnie Harris. Smith was reserved with accessory after a simple escape.
The public defender’s office was appointed to represent the suspects while they are in detention, according to the archives of the Orleans parish court. CNN contacted the public defender’s office to comment. The exception is Weeden, which was arrested in the parish of St. Tammany. CNN works to identify a lawyer for her.
The prisoners who have been captured are Kendell Myles, Robert Moody, Dkenan Dennis, Gary Price and Corey Boyd, while the prisoners are generally Jermaine Donald, Derrick Groves, Antoine Massey, Leo Tate and Lenton Vanburur.
Investigators think that other detainees provided materials used during escape and helped hide it after that, A source with direct knowledge of the investigation told CNN.
The 10 detainees escaped A hole in the wall behind a toilet In a disabled cell in which they had broken. It is believed that other prisoners would have put the toilet on the wall after the jailbreak to hide the hole, according to the source.
The escapees have used electric hairdresses with several mower blades to help make their way through cell walls, said the source. The Sheriff’s Office of the Orleans parish has not answered CNN questions as to whether the prisoners are allowed to have access to electric hairdresses and hairdressing equipment.
In addition, other prison detainees would also have provided Évadés towels that have been used to help them develop the barbed wire fence surrounding the prison of the Orleans parish, said the source.
The prosecutor of the District of the Parish of Orleans, Jason Williams, said last Thursday that the director of the police service of New Orleans, Crime Lab, had visited the prison to start a formal forensic treatment of the scene, which, according to him, had not been requested by the Sheriff’s office.
The radical investigation into jailbreak includes probes on Orleans Justice Center where the detainees were detained and in the Sheriff’s office of the Orleans parish which supervised it.
The governor of Louisiana, Jeff Landry, published an executive decree last Wednesday “forcing an immediate and aggressive response between several state agencies” in response to the escape. Orleans Justice Center is also during the audit by the Department of Public Security and Correctional Services of Louisiana. The last audit was more than a decade ago.
The sheriff of the Orleans parish, Susan Hutson, which oversees Orleans Justice Center, has been the subject of a meticulous examination. She was toasted at a meeting of the municipal council tense last week to find out if the persistent problems of the prison arise from inadequate funding or poor management. Hutson told the Council that she assumes “full responsibility” for “failure”, but also underlined the alleged involvement of prison staff.
“There were procedural failures. And missed notifications. But there were also intentional misdeeds. It was a coordinated effort helped by individuals in our own agency who made the choice to violate the law. An arrest was made, and we continue to continue all the people involved and this survey is active and in progress,” said sheriff.
A few hours after the city council meeting, the sheriff announced that it suspended its re -election campaign, saying to the public a declaration“I cannot spend a moment putting politics on your needs.”
