Accused Killer at Large After Louisiana Jail Escape
This photo provided by St. Landry Parish Sheriff's Office shows Keith Eli, 24, of Opelousas, one of three inmates who escaped from a southwestern Louisiana jail, Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2025. (St. Landry Parish Sheriff's Office via AP)
Authorities continued searching Saturday for the last of three inmates who escaped from a Louisiana parish jail by removing concrete blocks from a deteriorating wall.
“We would prefer that he surrender himself peacefully,” St. Landry Parish Sheriff Bobby J. Guidroz said. “But we will not rest until he is captured.”
Detectives and SWAT officers were actively pursuing 24-year-old Keith Eli, who remained at large three days after escaping with two other inmates from the St. Landry Parish jail in southwestern Louisiana, according to Maj. Mark LeBlanc, a sheriff’s office spokesperson. Eli had been jailed on a charge of second-degree murder.
One of the escapees, 24-year-old Johnathan Jevon Joseph, was captured Friday after a brief chase. Investigators acting on a tip located Joseph, who was jailed on charges including rape, hiding in a residence. Joseph fled to a nearby storage shed, where he surrendered after being surrounded, LeBlanc said.
The third inmate, 26-year-old Joseph Allen Harrington, died by suicide Thursday after police located him at a home. Port Barre Police Chief Deon Boudreaux said officers used a loudspeaker to urge Harrington to come out before he shot himself with a hunting rifle. Harrington had been facing multiple felony charges, including home invasion.
Sheriff Guidroz oversees the St. Landry Parish jail in Opelousas, about 130 miles northwest of New Orleans. He said the inmates exploited a severely deteriorated section of an upper wall, gradually removing mortar and concrete blocks over time. Once enough blocks were removed, the inmates slipped through the opening, used bedsheets to scale the jail’s outer wall, climbed onto a first-floor roof, and then lowered themselves to the ground.
The escape was not the first high-profile jailbreak in Louisiana this year. In May, 10 inmates escaped from a New Orleans jail after crawling through a hole hidden behind a toilet and leaving behind a message reading, “Too Easy LOL.” It took five months for authorities to recapture all 10 inmates.
About Post Author
