Killer's Aunt, a Former Jail Guard, Gave Him Confidential Info to Help Escape: Cops

Police believe the killer who escaped from the Kankakee County jail had confidential insider knowledge, and they suspect his aunt, a former jail guard, helped him.

Tonya Grant, 50, is charged with obstructing justice and aiding the escape of an inmate, reports the Kankakee Daily Journal. Her bail was set Saturday at $150,000.

Kamron Taylor, 23, was captured by Chicago police on the city’s South Side after a brief chase. Officers were responding to a suspicious person call. Taylor was carrying a gun, believed to be the one he took from the security guard he brutally beat during his escape, according to police.

The Daily Journal reports:

Grant allegedly provided Taylor with confidential security information about Jerome Combs Detention Center, where she once worked, during a jail visit with her nephew. After Taylor’s violent escape from Jerome Combs early Wednesday morning, police began reviewing recordings of all of his visits and phone calls. Grant was initially arrested on Thursday but did not go before a judge until Saturday.

It is unclear why Grant left the Kankakee County corrections department back in 2009 but Chief Deputy Ken McCabe said on Saturday that she was facing disciplinary sanctions at the time.

The manhunt for Taylor lasted three days. The security guard remains in the hospital.