Cryptocurrency-based betting website Polymarket is taking bets on whether each of the five currently at large New Orleans prison inmates who escaped from the Orleans Justice Center on May 16 will be recaptured by Friday.
Initially, 10 inmates managed to break out via a hole behind a toilet, but as of Wednesday morning, five had been recaptured.
Newsweek reached out to Polymarket via email for comment on Wednesday outside of regular working hours.
Why It Matters
Derrick Groves, one of the 10 escapees, was convicted of two counts of second-degree murder in October 2024. The other nine prisoners hadn’t been convicted but were being held on a range of charges, including second-degree murder, armed robbery and assault.
The Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office warned the public that the escapees should be considered “armed and dangerous.”
What To Know
As of 10:30 a.m. ET on Wednesday, Polymarket gave a 32 percent chance that Jermaine Donald would be recaptured by Friday, a 43 percent chance for Derrick Groves, a 25 percent chance for Antoine Massey, 51 percent odds on Leo Tate and 29 percent on Lenton Vanburen.
It had previously offered odds on Corey Boyd before his recapture in New Orleans, which was announced on Tuesday. Some $956 had been bet on him by the time he was taken back into custody.
Polymarket allows customers to buy and sell shares on the likelihood of future outcomes for between $0 and $1, and receive $1 per share if the outcome they predicted takes place.
The price is controlled by the market, which operates via cryptocurrency. This means that lots of bets on one side of an event will make it cheaper to buy shares in a different outcome. Rather than betting against Polymarket itself, each customer is effectively betting against other website users.
One share in Donald being captured by Friday could be purchased for 40c at 10:30 a.m. ET on Wednesday. The corresponding figures for the other four were Groves on 66c, Massey with 24c, Tate on 65c and Vanburen with 31c.
The most bets, totaling £1,031 ($1,386), were placed on Vanburen, while the fewest, at £297 ($399), went on Groves.
On Tuesday, the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office confirmed Sterling Williams, a 33-year-old employee at the Orleans Justice Center, had been arrested as they investigate whether he aided the 10 men in their escape.
Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson previously said she believed the escape was an inside job and three employees were suspended as part of an ongoing investigation.
What People Are Saying
Polymarket, Tuesday on X, formerly Twitter: “PRISONER PARLAYS? You can now bet on which inmates from the New Orleans jailbreak will be captured by Friday.”
The post was widely shared on the platform and received more than 980,000 views from other users.
Louisiana State Police spokesperson Katharine Stegall told Newsweek on Monday: “Troopers are providing personnel, logistical support, intelligence-led policing and coordination through the LSP Fusion Center. We have worked steadily through the weekend and will continue for the foreseeable future. We have every intention to continue pushing forward with our law enforcement partners until each of the fugitives is back in custody.”
What Happens Next
It remains to be seen whether the five prisoners will be returned to custody by Friday. Large-scale prison breaks are uncommon in the U.S., and authorities will be investigating to try to avoid a repeat of the May 16 events.
Read the full article here
