Authorities say 10 inmates escaped from a New Orleans jail; 9 still missing after one recaptured
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Authorities in Louisiana say they are in pursuit of nine inmates — at least one of whom is convicted of murder — who escaped from a New Orleans jail. Another inmate was captured Friday after a brief foot chase through the French Quarter, the Louisiana State Police said in a post on the social media platform X.
Authorities first noticed the 10 inmates were missing during a Friday morning headcount. Authorities initially said a total of 11 inmates had escaped but at a Friday afternoon news conference said one inmate thought to have escaped was in a different cell. The escapees range from 19 years old to 42. Most of the men are in their 20s.
One of the fugitive inmates, Derrick Groves was convicted on two charges of second-degree murder and two charges of attempted second-degree murder last year for his role in the 2018 Mardi Gras Day shootings of two men. Groves also left two other injured people “physically and emotionally scarred” from the shooting, according to the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s office, which described him as a “heinous criminal” in a news release.