Louisiana authorities launch search after 8 inmates escape from rural jail

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LAKE PROVIDENCE, La. (AP) — Louisiana authorities said Friday that eight inmates escaped from a rural jail, including some facing murder charges, setting off another manhunt in a state where bold jail breakouts over the past year have exposed security breakdowns.

Officials have not said how the escape unfolded in East Carroll Parish, an area of about 7,000 residents along the state's borders with Arkansas and Mississippi. The Louisiana State Police said three of the inmates had been captured as of Friday afternoon and that all were considered violent offenders.

“Do not approach under any circumstances,” state police said in a statement posted to social media.

The inmates were reported missing from the Riverbend Detention Center in Lake Providence around 1:20 a.m. Friday, according to state police.

Last year in Louisiana, 10 inmates broke out of a New Orleans jail after crawling through a hole behind a toilet. It wasn’t until five months later that all of them were captured following a search that spanned multiple states.

In December, three inmates escaped from a different Louisiana jail after removing concrete blocks from a deteriorating wall.

Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill posted on X that she had “offered the full assistance of my office" and had been in contact with the local sheriff and president of the state's sheriff's association.

Court records said the escapees were being held on charges that included murder, aggravated assault with a firearm and aggravated flight from an officer.

East Carroll Parish is in part of Louisiana that was hard hit by power outages following the deadly winter storm that moved across the U.S. this week. Nearly 1,000 customers in East Carroll Parish were still without power as of Friday afternoon, according to Poweroutage.us.

Sheriff Wydette Williams in a statement posted on Facebook late Friday afternoon said that they had the help of other law enforcement agencies and were working “around the clock.” He said that state police was taking the lead in the search for the remaining escapees and encouraged residents to “stay alert and report any suspicious activity immediately.”

State police and Williams did not immediately return messages from The Associated Press seeking comment.