CALICO ROCK, Ark. – A former Arkansas police chief remains on the run Tuesday.
Grant Hardin walked out of the inmate intake area of the Department of Corrections North Central Unit in Calico Rock on Sunday around 3:40 p.m.
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Authorities say he escaped by wearing a makeshift outfit designed to mimic a prison guard vest. He walked out of the sally port, an intake area for inmates.
The Izard County Sheriff’s Office warned people to lock their doors while a manhunt continues. Carolyn Browning of Calico Rock is one of many listening.
Hardin pled guilty to both first-degree murder in 2017 and a 1997 rape case a year later.
“That’s what makes you really nervous because you can’t imagine what a person is thinking that can do stuff like that, and I know I don’t want to face him,” Browning said.
Hardin was the police chief of Gateway. He also worked as a police officer, county constable, and corrections officer in many northwest Arkansas communities.
City museum director Bambi Bowden worries his experience may give his chances of long-term escape an edge over the average escapee.
“Did he plan he plan it for a holiday weekend? Did he plan it for all this rain we had? We just don’t know,” Bowden said.
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Local, state, and federal authorities have boxed areas leaving the North Central Unit with checkpoints to search vehicles as they use ATVs and every resource available to search the rural county.
Many people are already aware of Hardin’s crimes through documentaries about him. They are ready for this chapter to become history, too.
“I don’t know if we’ll put the picture (in the museum) down there on our wall or anything, but this is probably something that will live in infamy because it isn’t typical,” Bowden said.
The situation is affecting many businesses that rely on tourism. Some shop owners say vacationers cut their trip short after hearing of the escape.
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Hardin was last seen wearing all black. The Arkansas Department of Corrections ask anyone with information of Hardin’s whereabouts to call 911 immediately.
