Corrections1.com Staff
Gang leader Michael Rigby escaped from a maximum-security area of Florida’s Osceola County Jail last week by ripping a combination toilet and sink from his cell’s cinderblock wall and burrowing his way to freedom.
Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Twis Lizasuain said Rigby “crawled through the wall” and that the passage led to “a small maintenance area behind the cell,” according to Lizasuain, that has egress to a grassy area outside the maximum security facility.
After ripping open his cell’s wall, Rigby, 21, climbed through the hole and over some pipes before breaking a lock on a rollup door roughly half the size of a single car garage door. He was then outside of the building. Rigby either went over or under the two razor-topped fences that surround the Jail and fled to freedom, central Florida’s WESH.com is reporting.
It is not clear how exactly Rigby was able to clear the fence, but his discarded jail clothes were found in a pile on the other side.
Two of Rigby’s family members have been arrested, accused of providing him with a car, money, clothing, food and a cell phone. Rigby himself, however, remains on the run.
Rigby, who broke out the night of Feb. 18, leads a gang accused of opening fire at a birthday party in July in Poinciana, a community of 70,000 residents on the Osceola-Polk county line, according to court records, the Orlando Sentinal is reporting.
Security at the Osceola County Jail has been a concern for county officials since Rigby escaped without anyone noticing what may have been days or weeks of digging. Arrest reports in the past year show inmates opened cell doors simply by shaking or kicking them.
Corrections Chief Greg Futch told Central Florida News 13 that multiple measures have been taken since Rigby escaped and security changes were already under way.
Rigby’s impending trial has multiple ties to street-gang violence in Poinciana, Florida. More than a dozen men and women with extensive criminal records and some with ties to Rigby’s gang have been called to testify, according to subpoenas issued by the Orange-Osceola State Attorney’s Office.
The case centers on a shooting last summer in Poinciana that crippled one woman and missed striking two other guests. Few details have been released about what happened.
Tuesday, Jail Chief Gregory Futch apologized to the community for allowing the escape and admitted it is possible Rigby was not checked every 30 minutes, as designated under jail policy.
He was discovered missing at 5:40 a.m. Friday, Feb. 19, but was likely gone from jail property by 12:30 a.m.
Police said they believe Michael Rigby is no longer in Florida, and may be with a girlfriend from out-of-state. He is believed to be driving a red, four-door Mitsubishi Mirage with black rims and tinted windows, with possible Tennessee tag number 4H15251.