COVINGTON, La. -- The hunt for escaped inmate Carlos Rodriguez has stretched into its second day, and while police believe they know what parish he is in, they are still waiting on leads to his exact location.
St. Tammany Parish Sheriff Jack Strain said Rodriguez is on the East Bank of Jefferson parish in the Kenner area, and he said multiple local, law-enforcement agencies are actively searching for Rodriguez
"We will spare no expense hounding this guy," Strain said. "We will run him to all corners of Jefferson Parish and beyond to make sure we recapture him."
Strain said he knows how Rodriguez got out of jail and security cameras videotaped parts of it, but he would not give that information out.
Strain said 20-year-old Jacob Jones, a Slidell resident, allegedly picked up Carlos Rodriguez in his car outside his jail and drove him to the parish Saturday night. Strain said police arrested Jones on Monday.
Police charged Jones with aiding and abetting a criminal.
"He went to the jail, actually right outside the perimeter of the jail, and waited for Rodriguez to come out, got in the car with him and drove him to Jefferson Parish," Strain said.
Rodriguez was in jail awaiting trial in a murder-for-hire case from last year. Rodriguez is the suspected hitman, accused of killing paramedic Mario Scramuzza in a murder-for-hire plot last February. Investigators say Scramuzza's wife, Gina, hired Rodriguez to kill her husband.
Strain said Rodriguez could try to make it to Mexico.
"There's no question whether or not it is Mexico, or points outside of the United States. that's why we've been in constant contact with the U.S. border patrol," Strain said.
Rodriguez is the fifth man in the past year to escape from the St. Tammany Parish Jail while awaiting murder or attempted murder charges, but Strain said he believes Rodriguez will be caught in Jefferson Parish.
"Jefferson Parish is much like St. Tammany. A lot of vigilant residents who pay attention to their surroundings, and I think a lot of good, honest hardworking people," Strain said. "I'm hoping one of them can call us or JPSO with a more recent lead that they have been in conctact with Carlos Rodriguez."
Strain said there was another man who attempted to escape from the jail with Rodriguez, but police apprehended him before he could escape. Strain said the man is not involved in the Scramuzza trial.
