‘Devil in the Ozarks’ Murderer Fashioned a Costume — and Made an Audacious Escape from Prison

Officials are still investigating how an ex-police chief managed to escape from an Arkansas prison earlier this year. Authorities say he allegedly disguised himself as a law enforcement officer, instructed a prison guard to “open the gate” to a parking lot, and walked out of custody with ease.

The inmate, 56-year-old former Gateway, Ark., police chief Grant Hardin, remained on the run for 10 days in late May before being recaptured in early June. He was returned to prison and now faces additional charges for escaping. Hardin has pleaded not guilty.

Hardin, who was featured in HBO’s 2023 Devil in the Ozarks docuseries, was already serving a 30-year sentence for the murder of a Gateway city official, along with two 25-year sentences for rape, stemming from convictions in 2017.

According to documents from a Critical Incident Review by the Arkansas Department of Corrections, officials have interviewed Hardin at least five times since his recapture on June 6. These interviews have helped investigators piece together the details of his elaborate escape.

Hardin reportedly crafted a makeshift police uniform that deceived other prison guards, enabling him to exit the facility. CNN first published the Arkansas Department of Corrections report, which was also reviewed by PEOPLE.

The report claims that Hardin planned the escape for six months and obtained the materials for his fake uniform while working unsupervised in the prison kitchen.

“Prior to the escape, he started preparing his clothes by using black markers (Sharpies) he had taken from the kitchen and laundry which he found lying around because staff were not keeping up with them,” the report states. Hardin wore what appeared to be an officer’s vest labeled “POLICE,” made from black kitchen aprons, along with a counterfeit silver badge fashioned from the top of a kitchen can.

Prisoners working in the North Central Unit’s kitchen in Calico Rock, Ark., were frequently left unsupervised on the back dock. Investigators believe Hardin changed into his uniform there and left without being noticed.

Security footage captured Hardin soon afterward, “pulling a cart, wearing altered clothes (died black), a vest, and a black hat,” the report notes. The cart contained what appeared to be a homemade ladder made of pallets and a box.

Hardin initially intended to use the ladder to climb over a fence, but he abandoned that plan and simply instructed a guard to open the gate. Once the gate was open, he walked to the ICC building, pretended to place something in a parked vehicle, then moved behind the building, crossed the road to the Deputy Warden’s house, and took a trail into the woods.

He is believed to have survived in the woods for about ten days, consuming berries, bird eggs, ants, and water from a creek, as well as from a CPAP machine he took from the prison infirmary.

Hardin has denied receiving assistance from other inmates or prison staff, though officials say his interviews have been inconsistent and lacked full transparency. The report notes, “Inmate Hardin was inconsistent and deceptive in answering all questions.”

He allegedly told authorities he had planned to hide in the woods for six months and then move west once search efforts subsided. However, hunger and the proximity of search teams forced him to abandon his plan early, leading to his capture.

The Arkansas Department of Corrections report states, “it is obvious there was a lot of confusion” among staff during the May 25 escape. Several disciplinary actions and security changes have been implemented since, and two prison employees have been fired, CNN reports.