South Louisiana authorities search for 2 of 4 men who escaped parish jail

AMITE, La. (AP) — Authorities in south Louisiana searched Monday for two of four men who escaped a parish jail through a perimeter fence.

Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff Daniel Edwards said the four inmates fled the facility through a section of the fence that “was found to be vulnerable and easily maneuvered in such a way that a small statured body could slide through.”

Earlier Monday, authorities found two of the escaped men — Avery Guidry, 19, and Travon Johnson, 21, both of Natalbany — hiding in a trash bin behind a store in Amite, Edwards said. The other two — Omarion Hookfin, 19, of Hammond, and Jamarcus Cyprian, 20, of Amite — remained on the run, he said.

The sheriff’s office said Johnson, Hookfin and Guidry were in jail following their arrest for a 2022 homicide in Hammond, while Cyprian was serving time for armed robbery and weapon charges. Hookfin also acquired additional charges of aggravated battery while jailed in a separate case in Catahoula Parish, authorities said.

Edwards urged anyone with information on the whereabouts of the remaining escaped inmates to contact emergency authorities or call CrimeStoppers of Tangipahoa’s anonymous tip line at 800-554-5245.