3 of 10 inmates recaptured after escape from New Orleans jail

Three of ten inmates who escaped from a New Orleans jail were apprehended by Friday night, while authorities continued to search for seven others in the jailbreak that may have had inside help, officials said.

Three of ten inmates who escaped from a New Orleans jail were apprehended by Friday night, while authorities continued to search for seven others in the jailbreak that may have had inside help, officials said.

The escape from the Orleans Parish Justice Center was discovered during a routine head count around 8:30 a.m. Friday, and there are signs that it was done with the help of people “inside of our department,” Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson said.

Three employees have been placed on leave without pay and an investigation is underway, the sheriff's office said. Hutson called it a "very serious and unacceptable situation.”

The inmates broke out by breaching a wall, Hutson said. Video shows several inmates jarring open a cell door at 12:22 a.m., then inmates enter that cell, and at 1 a.m. video shows them leaving a loading dock door, the sheriff’s office said. At 1:19 a.m., video shows them scaling a fence with blankets, it said.

“They were able to break open a door,” Hutson said. “They were still able to exit the jail about 1:01 a.m. after breaching a wall behind a toilet in the jail.”