Orleans Parish Justice Center: Ten inmates escape New Orleans jail 'with inside help’, manhunt launched

Ten inmates, including some charged with murder, have escaped from a New Orleans jail with inside help, and a manhunt is under way.

The Orleans Parish Justice Center, which mostly holds people awaiting trial or sentencing, discovered the inmates aged 19 to 42 were gone during a routine head count on Friday morning, officials said.

The escapees broke out around 1am. They first pulled a sliding cell door off its tracks then breached a wall by ripping away a toilet and sink, Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson said at an afternoon press conference.

Security video captured the men fleeing via a loading dock, scaling a wall and running across a nearby highway, she said. Two of the inmates were captured on Friday, but the remaining eight were still on the run.

“We have indication that these detainees received assistance in their escape from individuals inside of our department,” Ms Hutson said.

A jail employee monitoring surveillance video saw the escape but did not alert deputies, she said. She did not detail the assistance the inmates received.

Ms Hutson urged the public to stay alert and said various law enforcement agencies were working on the manhunt.

Louisiana State Police said in a statement that one recovered escapee was found hiding under a car in a hotel garage in New Orleans’ famed French Quarter.

New Orleans Police Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick said at a news conference that her department was notified about the jail break about two hours after the inmates were discovered missing, and that some were facing murder charges.

Sup. Kirkpatrick said it was concerning that her department was not notified sooner.

Sup. Kirkpatrick said police had notified some of the escapees’ alleged victims that they were on the run, and in one instance went to a home and removed a family thought to be in danger.