Police arrest a fifth person accused of helping fugitives who escaped from a New Orleans jail

By Matt Rehbein, Rebekah Riess, Holly Yan, CNN

(CNN) — Five people have been arrested on suspicion of helping some of the 10 escapees who broke out of the Orleans Justice Center last week.

On Friday, New Orleans police announced the arrest of Casey Smith, who is accused of helping two fugitives. The 30-year-old was taken into custody Thursday in the Third District of the city.

“Smith admitted to her role in aiding the escapees’ transport along with Cortnie Harris,” who was arrested Wednesday in connection with the incident, New Orleans police said.

A third suspect, Corvanntay Baptiste, was arrested earlier this week, accused of communicating with escapee Corey Boyd via phone and social media and helping him get food, Louisiana State Police said.

Another arrestee, Connie Weeden, is accused of sending cash via a cell phone app to escapee Jermaine Donald. Weeden, 59, was arrested in Slidell, about 30 miles northeast of New Orleans, Louisiana State Police said.

Besides sending cash, Weeden was in contact with Donald by phone both before and after the escape, state police said. She faces one felony count of accessory after the fact, which carries the possibility of a fine up to $500 and up to five years in prison, authorities said.

And Sterling Williams, a maintenance worker at the jail, was arrested on suspicion of helping the inmates escape by turning off the water to the cell where the inmates disconnected some of the plumbing to escape.

The number of arrestees accused of being accomplices now matches the number of escapees who have been captured.

Kendell Myles, Robert Moody, Dkenan Dennis, Gary Price and Corey Boyd are back behind bars.

As of midday Friday, five other escapees remain at large:

• Jermaine Donald, 42, who was charged with aggravated battery and obscenity
• Derrick Groves, 27, who was charged with battery of a correctional facility employee
• Antoine Massey, 32, who was charged with “domestic abuse battery inv strangulation” and theft of a motor vehicle between $5,000 and $25,000
• Leo Tate, 31, who was charged with possession of a firearm or weapon by a felon; simple burglary of an inhabited residence; “illegal carrying weapon with CDs”; and theft of a motor vehicle $5,000 to $25,000, among other charges
• Lenton Vanburen, 26, who was charged with battery of a correctional officer and battery of a correctional facility employee

“Those who choose to assist or conceal these individuals are violating the law and will be held accountable. Harboring fugitives threatens the safety of our communities and will not be tolerated,” the state police said.

Williams, the maintenance worker, is accused of “willfully and maliciously” assisting with the jailbreak, according to an arrest warrant affidavit. He faces one count of malfeasance in office and 10 counts of being a principal to simple escape.

In an interview with Fox News, Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill suggested Williams’ involvement extended beyond the night of the escape. “We think that it was more than just that night,” she said. “I can’t really give all the details of times and dates, but we believe this person had multiple days of involvement.”

Authorities allege Williams played a key role in the breakout by turning off the water to the toilet near where the inmates escaped. Williams said inmate Antoine Massey – one of the inmates still at large – threatened to shank him if he didn’t turn off the water, according to the affidavit.

Williams’ attorney, Michael Kennedy, said the worker was turning off water to an overflowing toilet after being told to do so and he is “fully convinced” of his client’s innocence.

Jail operations under scrutiny

The Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections is deploying at least 10 seasoned auditors to the Orleans Justice Center this week to investigate the escape.

The audit will “concentrate on jail operations, such as overall jail security, jail staffing and jail policy and procedures,” Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections Secretary Gary Westcott said in a news release Tuesday.

Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry tasked the department to audit the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office, to ensure they followed “conditions necessary to ensure the safe, efficient, effective and legal operation of a jail facility,” the release added.

The last audit of the facility by the department was in 2014, according to the agency.

Landry on Wednesday issued an executive order “mandating an immediate and aggressive response across multiple state agencies” to address the escape, which he called a “major breach.” He called for transparency and accountability in the jail facility and elsewhere in the state.

Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson, who oversees the jail, announced Tuesday she is suspending her reelection campaign, just hours after fielding tough questions from local leaders at a tense city council meeting.

“I am temporarily suspending my re-election campaign. I cannot spend a moment putting politics over your needs,” Hutson said in a statement posted on social media.

Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams and Murrill on Wednesday visited Orleans Justice Center as part of the ongoing investigation into the escape.

The district attorney said Thursday that the director of the New Orleans Police Department Crime Lab visited the jail to begin a formal forensic processing of the scene, which he said the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office had not requested.

Williams formally asked the sheriff’s office to voluntarily cooperate with the forensic analysis, including by sharing any records of staff fingerprints or DNA “for the purpose of inclusion or elimination of their profiles,” according to a letter Williams sent to the sheriff’s office on Thursday that was obtained by CNN.

A separate letter from Thursday formally requests that the sheriff’s office preserve all records related to the jailbreak including surveillance video and electronic communications between staff.

“It is critically important to get all fugitives back into custody. But it is equally important that we identify and hold accountable anyone who facilitated or assisted with this historic jailbreak,” the district attorney wrote.

CNN reached out to the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office for comment on the district attorney’s requests.

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CNN’s Jason Morris, Hanna Park, Michelle Krupa and Cindy Von Quednow contributed to this reporting.