Manhunt underway for former U.S. police chief imprisoned for murder, rape

NEW YORK, May 26 (Xinhua) -- A manhunt was underway in northern Arkansas after a former police chief convicted of first-degree murder and rape slipped out of a high-security prison, dressed in a fake law enforcement uniform, according to The New York Times on Monday.

Grant Hardin, 56, who had previously served as the police chief in Gateway, Arkansas, escaped from the Calico Rock North Central Unit around 2:50 p.m. Sunday local time, county officials said. He is considered extremely dangerous.

An image released by the Stone County Sheriff's Office on its Facebook page shows what it says is Hardin wearing clothes similar to a law enforcement uniform, escaping through a controlled gate while pushing a cart of utility materials.

"It has been determined that Hardin was wearing a makeshift outfit designed to mimic law enforcement when he escaped the North Central Unit. He was not wearing a Department of Corrections uniform, and all DOC-issued equipment has been accounted for," Rand Champion, a spokesman for the Arkansas Department of Corrections, said in a statement.