Man Accused Of Murder Escapes Prisoner Van In Indiana: Sheriff

GARY, IN — A man accused of murder escaped a private prisoner transport van Monday afternoon in Gary, Indiana, police said. Leon Taylor, 22, was being extradited from Texas to face murder charges in Lake County, Indiana.

Taylor, from Hammond, was with an agent from REDI Transports of Green Bay, Wisconsin, when he escaped the van at around 3 p.m. in the area of 35th and Grant Street in Gary. Police did not say how Taylor managed to get away.

An emergency alert was sent to cell phones in Lake County, Indiana, around 7:48 p.m., the Times of Northwest Indiana reported.

The agent called Gary police, and the Lake County Sheriff's Office was requested to assist with the search. Sheriff's officers responded, along with the Lake County Aviation Unit helicopter and a K-9 unit.

Taylor, who is black and is described as 6 feet tall and 162 pounds, was wearing a belly chain with handcuffs and a leg brace. Police said he was also wearing a gray hoodie with another black hoodie underneath, black Puma tennis shoes and black jeans, as seen in a photo shared by the sheriff's office.

Taylor is known to frequent Gary, East Chicago and Hammond.

Taylor is charged with murder in connection with a homicide in East Chicago.

Police said all extraditions outside a 250-mile radius from the Lake County Jail are handled by the courts, who then notify the sheriff's department of the detainee's estimated arrival time.

Taylor was still at large as of Monday evening.

Police said he is considered dangerous, and anyone who has information on his whereabouts should call 911 immediately.

In addition to the East Chicago murder charge, the Times reported that Taylor is facing armed robbery charges for a string of 2018 crimes in areas including South Hammond, Munster and Gary. In one incident, he's accused of putting a gun in a man's face while the man was taking his 2-year-old out of the backseat of a car.