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‘To[sic] easy lol’: 10 Inmates Escape New Orleans Prison, Remain Unnoticed for Seven Hours
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By Angela Mukigi, Editor
Angela is a freshman, first-year writer, and new copy editor for the Natick Nest.
The men, ages 19 to 42, escaped from New Orleans’ Orleans Parish Justice Center on May 16th a little after 12 am. No guards were watching as the one assigned to their cell pod was away getting food. The group included Antoine Massey who had already escaped in 2019 by cutting through a wire of chain link fence at an exercise yard—in daylight. Half of the 10 were being charged with second-degree murder and the other half were facing violence-related crimes.
They escaped by tearing open a faulty cell door and then breaching the wall behind a toilet and sink unit from a cell. After, they fled through a loading dock, scaled a wall, removed their uniforms, and ran across Interstate 10. While it’s still unclear, it’s likely that the inmates had no personal friendship and collaborated out of shared opportunity and circumstances. On the wall of the cell, the prisoner’s graffiti taunted, ‘to[sic] easy lol’ and ‘catch us when you can.’
To the bottom right is the toilet seat, disconnected from the wall. Image from KRGC.
It was not until 8:30 am, during a head count, that the inmates were discovered to be missing.
Susan Hutson. Image from Fox News.
Who is connected to the jailbreak?
During a press briefing, the Sheriff of Orleans Parish Justice, Susan Hutson, told reporters, “It’s almost impossible—not completely, but almost impossible—for anybody to get out of this facility without help.” Since then, we now know both internal and external assistance was involved.
One of the prison’s employees, Sterling Williams, was arrested the morning of May 20th and accused of knowingly helping the inmates escape. He admitted to turning the water off to the toilet that they escaped through. Williams says an escapee threatened to “shank” him if he did not comply and also that they tried to take his phone and even offered to bring him a book with CashApp information. Attorney General Liz Murrill responded saying he should have brought the threat and escape plan to someone’s attention. As of May 25, 2025, four other jail employees have been suspended.
Trevon Williams is an inmate who was in cahoots with the escapees. While specifics haven’t been discussed, Trevon was rebooked on 10 accounts of principal to simple escape for allegedly aiding the escapees. He was seen on a surveillance camera entering the cell and remaining there for half an hour at 12:35 am, right before the escape. When questioned, he told investigators he doesn’t remember why he entered that cell. The camera also caught him talking with two of the inmates moments before the escape. According to the warrant of his arrest, investigators believe he supplied a blanket and shirt for the inmates to use to climb over the razor wire fence.
It has been established that the fugitives received assistance from people in the public including food, transportation, and finances. As of May 25, 2025, at least 10 people total have been arrested for being in connection to the jailbreak.
Why was the escape ‘easy’ and unnoticed by authorities for over seven hours?
The sheriff says defective locks were a key factor. Ten days before the escape, officials from the sheriff’s office asked for money to fix the locks and cell doors. Susan Hutson, who has repeatedly pushed for fixing the jail’s deficiencies, says the getaway “once again highlighted the critical need for repairs and upgrades.”
Officials also say that internal help and the lack of monitoring in the cell pod were also main factors. From AP News, “Attorney General Liz Murrill said on Monday said [sic] it’s no secret that the jail has been experiencing staffing shortages and maintenance defects for years and that state and local officials, courts and law enforcement are working together to hastily address issues.”
How has New Orleans responded?
The jail currently houses 1,400 people and was built for minimum custody inmates. However, the prison houses many high security inmates and requires a "restricted housing environment that [does not] exist.” In response, the sheriff’s office has transferred dozens in custody to more secure locations in light of the jailbreak. The chief of corrections for the jail has said that they are looking to fix issues by “[hardening] physical aspects of this prison so that we can be realistic about the population that is being held there.”
Though the Mayor says that money has been allocated to the sheriff’s office for operating expenses and capital upgrades, the chief financial officer for the sheriff’s office says that the current budget “doesn’t support what we need” to guarantee these critical upgrades.
Who has been captured?
As of May 25, 2025, half of the fugitives have been recaptured while the others remain at large.
As for the rest of the inmates, the city is using surveillance videos in combination with facial recognition AI technology. A video of two escapees walking down a street was released to the public and ultimately led to the capture of one of them. The cameras are managed by Louisiana’s Police Department and the AI technology is owned by a nonprofit called Project N.O.L.A.
Ultimately, if the center had more employment, cell locks that worked, and less crowding in the jail—which are solvable problems with capital—this might not have happened. Hopefully, what comes out of this jailbreak is more funding for the Orleans Parish Justice Center and other institutions in the country that have similar deficiencies.
Information obtained from The New York Times, CNN, CBS News, The Guardian, KRGC, Times of India, AP News, ABC News, Boston 25 News, The Wall Street Journal, and AP News.
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