You’ve probably seen the name Antoine Massey popping up in the headlines lately, likely tied to words like "manhunt" or "viral video." For a few chaotic months in 2025, it felt like the entire Gulf South was looking for him.
He wasn't just another name on a docket. Massey became a sort of bizarre social media figure while hiding from the U.S. Marshals, claiming he didn’t even "escape" the jail but was "let out." It sounds like the plot of a gritty New Orleans noir, but the reality is much more sobering.
He’s a man with a rap sheet that stretches back to his teenage years and a knack for finding the exit of supposedly secure buildings.
The Great Escape of 2025
On May 16, 2024, the Orleans Justice Center (OJC) suffered one of the most embarrassing security breaches in its history. Antoine Massey was one of 10 inmates who vanished into the humid New Orleans night.
How did they do it? It was almost cartoonish. They ripped out a faulty toilet, squeezed through a hole in the wall where the steel bars had been cut, and scaled a barbed-wire fence. To make it even more insulting for the Sheriff’s Office, someone left graffiti on the wall: “To Easy LoL.”
The jailbreak went unnoticed for hours.
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By the time the headcounts were done, Massey was long gone. While most of the other escapees were rounded up within days, Massey and a convicted murderer named Derrick Groves managed to stay in the wind. This wasn't Massey's first rodeo.
A Career in Leaving Custody
If there were a hall of fame for escape artists, Massey might have his own wing in the Louisiana chapter. This guy has been "leaving" detention centers since he was 15.
- 2007: He broke out of a juvenile center using metal shackles to smash a window.
- 2019: He slipped out of the Morehouse Detention Center and made it all the way to Texas before being caught.
- 2023: He was put on an ankle monitor. He cut it off exactly two hours later.
Basically, keeping Antoine Massey behind bars has proven to be an uphill battle for the state of Louisiana. Matt Dennis, a bounty hunter who has actually caught Massey before, famously told reporters that Massey "doesn’t belong on the first floor of an unsupervised pod." He knew the guy was a flight risk long before the OJC wall had a hole in it.
The Viral Videos and "Donald Trump, Help Me!"
This is where the story gets really weird. While the FBI and state police were raiding houses in New Orleans, Massey was busy on Instagram.
He started posting videos from a kitchen somewhere, wearing a sweatsuit and showing off his facial tattoos. He didn't look like a guy terrified of being caught. Instead, he was pleading his case to the public. He claimed he was wrongfully accused of the crimes that landed him in OJC—specifically kidnapping and rape charges involving his girlfriend.
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"I didn't break out. I was let out," he said in one clip that went viral.
He even appealed to Donald Trump, Meek Mill, and Lil Wayne for help. It was a bold, if not slightly delusional, move. He held up papers to the camera, claiming he had an affidavit from the victim recanting her story. While he was playing influencer, the reward for his capture climbed to $50,000.
What Did Antoine Massey Actually Do?
Strip away the "folk hero" vibes of the jailbreak, and the charges are heavy. Massey was being held for a November 2024 incident involving his girlfriend.
The state alleged he beat, kidnapped, and raped her. During his trial in St. Tammany Parish in December 2025, things took a turn. The victim actually stood up on the stand and recanted. She said the whole thing didn't happen.
Prosecutors didn't buy it. They argued this was a classic case of domestic violence dynamics—where a victim feels pressured or terrified into changing their story. They pointed to medical records and physical evidence from the hospital where she first reported the assault.
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The jury agreed with the prosecutors. After just an hour of talking it over, they found Massey guilty of first-degree rape, second-degree kidnapping, and domestic abuse battery.
The Final Capture and What’s Next
The manhunt finally ended on June 27, 2025. An anonymous tip led U.S. Marshals to a house in the Hollygrove neighborhood of New Orleans. No dramatic shootout, no grand chase—just a quiet arrest at a residence on Stroelitz Street.
Interestingly, it turned out the jailbreak had inside help. A maintenance worker named Sterling Williams eventually admitted he helped the inmates by messing with the plumbing. He claimed Massey threatened to "shank" him if he didn't help.
Honestly, the legal mess following this is going to take years to untangle. Massey is currently facing:
- Life imprisonment for the rape conviction in St. Tammany.
- Escape charges in Orleans Parish.
- Theft and domestic abuse counts in separate jurisdictions.
His sentencing is set for February 12, 2026. For now, he’s being held at Angola, the state’s most notorious maximum-security prison. It’s a lot harder to "squeegee" through the walls there.
Actionable Insights for Following the Case:
- Track the Sentencing: Watch for the February 12, 2026, hearing in St. Tammany Parish, which will determine if Massey spends the rest of his life in prison.
- Monitor the OJC Reforms: This escape triggered massive oversight into Sheriff Susan Hutson’s management. Expect more news on jail infrastructure spending in New Orleans.
- Verify Social Media Claims: This case is a prime example of why viral "innocence" videos should be taken with a grain of salt until the physical evidence is presented in court.