May 12, 2023
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Nasir Grant, 24, who had been in jail awaiting gun and drug charges, was arrested by U.S. Marshals on Thursday night after he and Ameen Hurst, 18, escaped the Philadelphia Industrial Correctional Facility on Sunday.
One of the two men who escaped from the Philadelphia Industrial Correctional Center in Holmesburg on Sunday night has been arrested, U.S. Marshals said.
Nasir Grant, 24, who had been in jail awaiting gun and drug charges, was taken into custody without incident Thursday night after U.S. Marshals stopped a car on the 2800 block of West Dauphin Street in North Philadelphia. Deputy U.S. Marshal Robert Clark told the Inquirer that Grant was found in the passenger seat, but did not disclose who else was in the car.
Grant escaped from the jail with Ameen Hurst, 18, an alleged killer, after cutting a hole in the fence around the facility's perimeter and scaling two other fences, investigators said. Their escape was not detected until a 3 p.m. head count Monday, despite three earlier head counts. The two men were in the same prison unit but were not cellmates, police said.
Hurst remains at large. He has been charged in connection with four homicides that occurred in the city over the last three years. He is accused of carrying out a quadruple shooting in West Philly in March 2021 that killed two people and then, days later, killing a man who had just been released from prison. He also allegedly committed a homicide on Christmas Eve in 2020.
@USMS_Philly investigators arrested Nasir Grant, 24, at approximately 1030pm in the 2800 block of W. Dauphin Street in Philadelphia. @PhillyPolice sought Grant for escaping a Philadelphia prison on May 7th. Marshals still seek Ameen Hurst, 18, who is still at large. pic.twitter.com/mNPNFzUjGM
— USMS Philadelphia (@USMS_Philly) May 12, 2023
On Thursday, police arrested 21-year-old Xianni Stalling for allegedly aiding Hurst and Grant in their escape. She allegedly received a call from one of them before they both broke free, police said. She has been charged with conspiracy and hindering apprehension.
Philadelphia Deputy Police Commissioner Frank Vanore did not share details about Stalling's alleged role in the escape, but described the recorded phone call to the Inquirer as being "obvious" evidence that she was helping from the outside. Stalling had been jailed at the facility on an attempted murder charge earlier this year, but was released in February, 6ABC reported.
The U.S. Marshals Service and Philly police did not immediately respond to requests for comment about Grant's arrest.
After the men escaped, AFSCME Local 159, the union representing Philly's correctional officers, shared what it called a preliminary incident report that stated the inmates were "able to compromise their cell door and exit their housing unit that was unmanned due to staff shortage. It added that the men were able to "leave the grounds undetected because of post being closed due to temporary staff shortage per the order of the executive office."
The city responded by saying that the document had been "forged" and contained inaccurate information. The Department of Prisons denied that Hurst and Grant were able to escape due to a staffing shortage. The department is investing the escape along with the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections and Philly police.
"The Department of Prisons is committed to identifying any procedural failures that may have allowed the inmates to escape undetected and will update its protocol accordingly to ensure the security of the Philadelphia Industrial Correctional Center and all other facilities under its management," Prisons Commissioner Blanche Carney said Tuesday.
The escape occurred just days after the union unanimously voted "no confidence" in Carney, citing a staffing crisis and health and safety issues plaguing city prisons. The union has remained critical of Carney over the last several days, calling for her to resign or be replaced by Mayor Jim Kenney, who appointed her to the role in 2016.
There is a $25,000 reward being offered by the city and the U.S. Marshals for information leading to Hurst's arrest. He is considered dangerous. Anyone with information on his whereabouts is asked to contact Northeast Detectives at (215) 686-3153, the police tip line at (215) 686-8477, or dial 911.
