Considering that the manhunt for the two killers who escaped from the Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora, N.Y., is still in progress, the last thing we need is another manhunt, in NYC, to run alongside it.
Luckily, the worst didn't come to pass when investigators sweeping a cell at the Manhattan Detention Center after breaking up a contraband smuggling ring uncovered an inmate's apparent escape plot. The escape plot involved using 64 neatly tied together bed sheets which were enough for him to climb down 11 stories from his cellblock to the street, city officials said Thursday.
The offender, Earnest Murphy, awaiting trial on an attempted murder charge hid the sheets under a sink in his cell at the Manhattan Detention Center.
"He did not make any confessions, but honestly, there is no other conceivable purpose for keeping that many bed sheets tied together like that, other than for an escape," said Mark Peters, the Department of Investigations Commissioner, as noted by Observer.
The real story, however, is that a city correction officer was the one who facilitated the situation. Patricia Howard, 44, was arrested on May 9 holding a bag of contraband that included drugs, lighters and flashlights and $800 which was her cut from the prisoner run smuggling ring.
Apparently, she walked into the jail with the contraband and handed it over to one inmate who would then disseminate them to others. In matter of fact, her services were so greatly appreciated that she received a thank you note from one of the inmates.
Furthermore, the inmate used his sister and niece to fill out orders outside the prison. All four were charged with crimes including promoting prison contraband, attempted sale of a controlled substance and bribery, according to the Guardian.
The search also turned up a blade, a pen with a sharpened tip and marijuana and a scale for weighing drugs. The investigation continues.
