Arrested New Orleans jail worker says he helped inmates to escape after stabbing threat

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A New Orleans jail maintenance worker has been arrested after admitting he turned water off to a toilet covering a hole in a cell wall, allowing 10 men to squeeze through the gap and escape the facility.

The inmates pulled off the daring escape from the Orleans Justice Center early Friday by yanking open a faulty cell door, moving the toilet and slithering through the hole. Graffiti on the wall included the message “To Easy LoL,” with an arrow pointing to the gap.

Officials have underscored multiple security lapses, including ineffective cell locks and that the inmates escaped when the lone guard monitoring them went to get food. The absence of the inmates, many charged with or convicted of violent offenses such as murder, was not reported to law enforcement for hours. Four have since been apprehended and six remain at large.

During a tense New Orleans City Council meeting on Tuesday, Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson, who oversees the jail, said she “takes full accountability” for the escape.

“There were procedural failures and missed notifications, but there were also intentional wrongdoings —- this was a coordinated effort aided by individuals inside our own agency who made the choice to break the law,” Hutson said. “We are continuing to pursue everyone involved.”

Responding to a question from Councilmember Oliver Thomas, Hutson said she couldn’t guarantee inmates would not be left unattended again, noting the jail is operating with 60% staffing capacity.

Arrested staffer describes his involvement in the escape

The inmates escaped by removing a sink-toilet combination unit from a cell, then cutting steel bars behind the cell room sink, Hutson said. After bending the bars they slipped out. It’s unclear what they used to saw through the bars.

Authorities believe sheriff’s employees may have helped, and three have been suspended. On Tuesday, authorities made their first staff arrest.

Maintenance worker, Sterling Williams, 33, admitted to law enforcement that one of the escapees “advised him to turn the water off in the cell” before the men slipped away through the hole in the wall, the Louisiana Attorney General’s office said in a statement.

In an arrest affidavit, Williams said one of the inmates who escaped had threatened to “shank” him if he did not turn off the water. Another inmate tried to take Williams’ phone and attempted to get him to bring a book with cash app information.

Thomas said the sheriff’s office has a responsibility to protect employees from threats and create a safe environment for them to report problems such as a planned escape.

“We cannot allow the inmates to run the facilities. That can’t happen,” Thomas said. “We cannot allow them to threaten the men and women who work there.”

Authorities say by turning off the water, Williams “willfully and maliciously assisted with the escape.”

“If the inmates removed the sink in the cell and disconnected the rest of the plumbing with the water still on, the plan to escape would not have been successful and potentially flooded the cell, drawing attention to their actions,” the affidavit says.

Williams is charged with 10 counts of principle to simple escape and malfeasance in office. The Associated Press was unable to immediately locate Williams’ attorney. It is unclear if Williams was among the three suspended employees.

Delays and ongoing security concerns

Officials have pointed to other security lapses before, during and after the jailbreak.

On Tuesday, New Orleans officials grilled the sheriff’s office about why there was an hourslong delay in notifying law enforcement of the escape.

While a head count of inmates normally starts around 6:30 a.m. and takes less than an hour, sheriff’s officials said they were still verifying whether inmates had escaped more than two hours later. Jeworski “Jay” Mallet, the jail’s Chief of Corrections, said their inability to verify the escape led to the delay.

City and state police did not find out about the escape until around 10:30 a.m., more than nine hours later. The New Orleans Police Department Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick told the council that she learned of the outbreak indirectly.

Local police should have been notified immediately because they have “exponentially vaster” resources to track down the inmates, Councilmember J.P. Morrell said.

“There were failures, failures in our personnel,” Hutson said.

A growing number of state and local officials have said blame for the escape rests squarely on Hutson.

“As sheriff I take fully accountability for this failure,” the sheriff told the New Orleans City Council on Tuesday. “Our community deserves answers and more importantly it deserves action.”