Manhunt for killer police chief nicknamed ‘Devil in the Ozarks' after jailbreak
Officers are hunting a former police chief and convicted killer and rapist nicknamed 'Devil in the Ozarks' who escaped from prison over the weekend.
Grant Hardin, the former police chief in the small town of Gateway near the Arkansas-Missouri border, was serving lengthy sentences for murder and rape.
On Sunday, Hardin escaped from the North Central Unit — a prison also known as the Calico Rock prison — by disguising himself and wearing a 'makeshift outfit designed to mimic law enforcement,' state prison officials said in a statement.
'That was not a standard inmate uniform, not a standard correctional uniform,' said Rand Champion, a spokesman for the Arkansas department of corrections.
Authorities are using dogs, drones and helicopters to search for the escapee, Mr Champion added. 'Everything we've got, we're using,' he said.
Mr Champion said the search area has been widened the longer Hardin has been missing, although could not provide further details.
He said: 'Where this facility is located, the topography does provide challenges,' he said. 'At the same time, it kind of limits where he is able to get.
'It's called Calico Rock for a reason, because it's very rocky.'
Complicating the search effort is the heavy rain that's fallen in recent days in the area, he said. 'You take that rain and combine it with the terrain, and it makes for a tough situation.'
Izard County Sheriff Charley Melton urged local residents to lock their homes and cars and call 911 if they notice anything suspicious. Other sheriffs also issued similar warnings about Hardin, who was the focus of a 2023 documentary, Devil in the Ozarks.
Cheryl Tillman, whose brother James Appleton was killed by Hardin in 2017, said she and other relatives are alarmed by Hardin's escape since they were witnesses in his court proceedings.
'We were there at his trial when all that went down, and he seen us there, he knows,' she said, adding: 'He's just an evil man. He is no good for society.'
Hardin pleaded guilty in October 2017 to first-degree murder for fatally shooting Appleton, who was 59.
Appleton worked for the Gateway water department when he was shot in the head on Feb 23 2017, near Garfield. Police found Appleton's body inside a car.
Investigators at the time did not release a motive for the killing and Hardin was sentenced to 30 years in prison.
He is also serving 50 years in prison for the 1997 rape of an elementary school teacher in Rogers north of Fayetteville.
Hardin had been held in the Calico Rock prison since 2017.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
2 hours ago
- The Sun
Cops hunt on-the-run prisoner, 33, who escaped from jail & was last seen on train as public warned ‘do not approach him'
AN urgent manhunt has been launched after a lag escaped from prison. Liam Slater is reported to have absconded from HMP Hatfield in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, on Sunday - with police warning members of the public not to approach him. The 33-year-old was last seen boarding a train to Leeds at Stainforth Station at 8.46pm. Cops say he has links to Wetherby and Seacroft in Leeds. They want to hear from anyone who has seen or spoken to Slater recently. A South Yorkshire Police statement added: "If you see Slater, please do not approach him but instead call 999. "If you have any other information about where he might be, you can contact us online or by calling 101. "Please quote incident number 818 of 18 May 2025 when you get in touch." 1
Reuters
3 hours ago
- Reuters
Criminals turn to drones and social media to sell illegal cigarettes
LONDON, June 11 (Reuters) - Tobacco smugglers and black market salesmen are increasingly using technologies such as social media and drones to deliver cigarettes to smokers in Europe and avoid law enforcers, a report by consulting group KPMG published on Wednesday found. The report, produced annually and commissioned by Philip Morris International (PM.N), opens new tab, looks at illegal consumption of cigarettes on the continent - which big tobacco companies say costs them sales and authorities say costs them tax revenues. In 2024, KPMG found that almost 40 billion illicit cigarettes were consumed across 38 European nations, based in part on a study of empty packs collected in those countries. It also cited interviews with law enforcement. The gangs' flexible strategies have helped to drive a 10.8% increase in illicit consumption versus 2023, according to KPMG, which also attributed the rise to higher taxes and prices in markets including France and the Netherlands. The report said criminal groups had shifted towards smuggling smaller packages, more often, via budget airlines. They are also making greater use of rail and drones, and are increasingly bypassing physical stores to sell directly to consumers on social media, it continued. The more recent change in tactics follows another shift from 2020, when the groups moved production closer to end-markets, partly in response to the pandemic disruption, but also reducing the chance of detection. KPMG said in 2024 the groups had also begun holding less inventory, which is reflected in a decrease in the size of illicit cigarette seizures as the gangs mitigate their risks and reduce the impact of raids by law enforcers. Big tobacco companies say tax increases have driven growth in illicit cigarette consumption. Public health campaigners and institutions such as the World Bank, however, have said such claims are overblown and that high taxes can support public health by reducing tobacco consumption, while generating revenues for governments.
Reuters
6 hours ago
- Reuters
Los Angeles mayor issues curfew for downtown Los Angeles
June 10 (Reuters) - Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass on Tuesday issued a curfew for the city's downtown following several days of intense protests against ICE raids that saw clashes between demonstrators and law enforcement, widespread vandalism and some looting, particularly during the late night and early morning hours. The curfew will begin at 8 p.m. local time on Tuesday and last until 6 a.m. local time on Wednesday and apply to a 1-sqaure-mile area in downtown.
