The last man of the New Orleans jailbreak has been captured. Derrick Groves was one of the 10 inmates who fled their cells in May. He was discovered nearly 5 months later on Wednesday, October 8, 2025, hiding in the crawl space of an Atlanta home. On top of his other charges, he is now facing a simple escape charge, and a hearing is scheduled for today.
Louisiana Prison Jailbreak
On May 16, multiple men, ranging in age from teens to early 40s, broke out of the Orleans Parish Justice Center before the early morning headcount. They reportedly climbed through a hole in the wall behind a toilet in the communal bathroom, scaled the fence, and crossed an interstate.
Authorities realized during the routine head count they were missing, and had left only a smiley face and taunting messages written on the bathroom wall, including “To easy LoL”.
Three of the escaped inmates were captured in New Orleans the same day, and 8 of them were captured within the month. However, two lasted a bit longer on the outside.
Antoine Massey was the ninth inmate to be captured six weeks after the jailbreak. The last and final inmate found is Derrick Groves, a 28-year-old who was convicted of murder. Despite an extensive and multi-agency effort, it took months for authorities to track him down. Crimestoppers of Greater New Orleans was offering a $50,000 reward and received a tip that led to Groves’ capture.
Finding The Final Inmate
Louisiana State Police Superintendent Robert Hodges reported that a task force formed to investigate the jailbreak learned earlier this month that Groves was likely in the Atlanta area. They were able to trace him to a specific resident through “information gathered via multiple search warrants and other investigative means.”
On Thursday, October 9, authorities arrived at the suspect’s house southwest of Atlanta to execute warrants. The police, U.S. Marshals, and a SWAT team arrived and took Groves into custody. They said the situation was a brief standoff between authorities and the inmate. “We deployed a number of canisters of gas to help move him throughout the house … he moved to the basement of the house,” Atlanta Deputy Police Chief Kelley Collier said. “Soon after, Clayton County K-9 was deployed in the crawl space of the location, and found him in that crawl space.”
Authorities have declined to comment on how Groves came to be at that specific house or how long he had been perched in the crawl space. Collier said no one was home at the time of his capture, but Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams reported that there was, and no one was injured. The Atlanta Police Department released a video of his arrest, and it shows Groves blowing a kiss to the camera as he is put into the back of a police cruiser.
Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry praised state officials and law enforcement for bringing in the 10th and final escapee. “You picked the wrong State,” Landry wrote on social media. “Thank you to our incredible law enforcement officials from the federal, state, and local levels who worked tirelessly to put each of these men back where they belong: BEHIND BARS.”
Convictions Before The Jailbreak
Groves was connected to the 2018 Mardi Gras-day double shooting and the murder of four individuals on the New Orleans metro. In October 2024, he was convicted of two counts of second-degree murder and two counts of attempted second-degree murder. He also pleaded guilty to manslaughter in two other cases. At the time of the jailbreak, he was awaiting sentencing on the two counts of attempted murder and a federal firearms charge, which he was also convicted of last year.
Next Actions
In addition to Groves’ previous charges, he has been charged with simple escape, like the other nine escapees. He was booked at the Fulton County jail and is expected to be extradited to New Orleans. Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill said his hearing schedule for Thursday will determine whether that happens, because he has the option to waive extradition.
At Wednesday’s press conference, Murrill stated, “He will be arraigned on those charges as soon as we get him back from Georgia,” and added he will eventually end up in the Louisiana State Penitentiary with his fellow escapees. She intends to have him prosecuted “to the full extent of the law.”
Former Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office employee, Darriana Burton, and Groves’ girlfriend were arrested in June on felony counts of conspiracy to commit simple escape. Authorities are looking further into accomplices who aided in Groves’ escape and evasion of officials. Orleans Parish District Attorney Jason Williams insists he had help and said his office will conduct a thorough investigation to determine how he managed to remain on the run for 5 months.
