Recreation time ended up being extended for four inmates who were able to escape from the Tangipahoa Parish Jail, and no one at the jail was even aware of their escape according to WBRZ.

Two of the inmates snuck through a hole in a corroded fence to begin their escape. Two inmates escaped Saturday and then two other inmates escaped on Sunday.

In addition to no one at the jail being aware that the inmates had escaped, it took a relative of one of the escapees to call the jail to notify them of what was going on.

Razor Wire at Tangipahoa
WBRZ Photo
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How Did This Happen?

Chief Jimmy Davis says there was not a proper headcount or the escapes would have been detected much sooner.

He adds that a lack of training and supervision is also to blame, but the issues will be corrected.

Davis says they also have an issue with staffing.

Dumpster Inmates Were In
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Davis says that two inmates were caught. They are Travon Johnson and Avery Guidry, both from Natalbany. Two other inmates are still on the loose Jamarcus Cyprian of Amite and Omar Hookfin of Hammond.

About the Saturday escape incident, Davis says,

Apparently, they made their way (out), they hid and after dark, they went up under a wall and they were able to scale two fences and get away.

Jamarcus Cyprian
WBRZ Photo
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The two inmates who escaped Sunday used exactly the same escape route as the other two.

Davis says that Johnson and Guidry were recaptured. They apparently had been hiding inside of a dumpster behind a Dollar General store. They were taken into custody and Davis says they have had reports of the other two people being spotted in the area near the jail.

Omarian Hookfin
WBRZ Photo
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The inmates were in jail on the following charges:

Jamarcus Cyprian is in jail on a charge of armed robbery

Avery Guidry is in jail for first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, armed robbery and aggravated kidnapping

Omarian Hookfin is in jail for first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, armed robbery and aggravated kidnapping

Travon Johnson is in jail for first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, armed robbery and aggravated kidnapping

Guidry, Hookfin, and Johnson were arrested following a home invasion in 2022 in which a man was killed and his daughter was shot multiple times.

Cyprian and Hookfin are still being sought.

Davis summoned the situation up this way,

Ultimately the responsibility falls on the Sheriff's Office. It's a failure. We had a failure within. We hope to correct, and learn from our mistakes and move forward.

 

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