White supremacist gang leader escapes from jail using ‘dummy bodies’

President of New Aryan Empire accused of selling ‘copious amounts’ of meth and attempted murder

Wesley Gullett, a leader of a white supremacist gang in Arkansas, has escaped a local jail and is being sought by authorities (AP)

The leader of a white supremacist gang has escaped from a US county jail, the prison service said.

Wesley Gullett, the president of the New Aryan Empire, has fled the Jefferson County Detention Center in Pine Bluff, Arkansas.

There is a $10,000 (£8,200) reward for information leading to his capture. He is facing charges of attempted murder and illegal drug distribution.

Gullet was ensnared earlier this year in a roundup of 54 members of the hate group.

Christopher Sanderson, a felon facing a firearms possession charge in an unrelated case, escaped with him. There is also a $5,000 (£4,100) reward for information leading to his capture.

“Gullett and Sanderson should be considered armed and dangerous,” the US Marshals Service said.

The Marshals Service was informed of the escape in the early hours of Wednesday morning, although it is unclear when the escape occurred.

“We were made aware this morning of the inmates’ escape and are working with our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners to secure their return into custody,” Cody Hiland, the US attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, said in a statement.

Jefferson County sheriff, Lafayette Woods Jr, told the Pine Bluff Commercial that the escapees put “dummy bodies” in their beds during a bed check.

The sheriff said a staffing shortage and delayed renovations to the jail because of a funding crunch left the facility vulnerable to an escape

In an indictment unsealed in February, prosecutors said the New Aryan Empire sold “copious amounts” of methamphetamine around the Arkansas River Valley.

The group, known as NAE, has been compared by authorities to gangs like MS-13, the Bloods, the Crips and the Aryan Brotherhood.

Gullett is accused of plotting the attempted murder of Bruce Wayne Hurley, a government informant who was killed in 2016. Hurley’s killer was not identified in the indictment.

The New York Times