Marion County Sheriif’s office
A manhunt is underway for a murder suspect who was mistakenly released from an Indiana jail due to a clerical error.
TheU.S. Marshals Serviceis offering a reward of up to $10,000 for information leading to Mason’s capture. It said that Mason may either be in the Indianapolis or Minneapolis areas.
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NBC Newsreported that Mason was arrested on Sept. 11 in Indianapolis, and had been detained at the Adult Detention Center. He was accidentally released two days later.
“On Sept. 12 one of our inmate records clerks thought she was correcting different bookings for Mr. Mason. She removed two of the holds leaving one additional hold for Mr. Mason. The next day on Sept. 13, Ramsey County, out of Minnesota, lifted the last and final hold that we had booked on for Mr. Mason,” Marion County Sheriff’s Office Col. James Martin told reporters Tuesday, per NBC News.
He further added: “Our clerk that was reviewing it sees three Minnesota holds, didn’t realize what she was doing obviously. It’s a critical error, critical mistake.”
The sheriff’s office announced in apress release shared on Facebookthat two employees were terminated on Sept. 15 in relation to the incident.
“We’re going to be very aggressive in pursuing you,” Martin said Thursday, perABC News, referring to those thinking about assisting Mason. “We will find you. We will criminally charge you, just as we did Desiree Oliver.”
The sheriff’s office said that the accidental release was not disclosed to the public until six days later so that it could be used as a “tactical advantage” to apprehend Mason and prevent him from hiding, NBC News reported.
Mason was charged in Minnesota’s Hennepin County District Court In August 2021 with second-degree intentional murder and illegal weapons possession over the shooting of Dontevius Ahmad Catchings in Minneapolis two months prior, per theStar Tribune. According to the murder charges, the two got into a fight over a gun outside of a funeral when gunfire erupted, resulting in Catchings’ death, per the outlet.
source: people.com
