Hunt for Devil of the Ozarks

Communities live in fear as rapist and killer strolls out of prison... and disappears

- BY CHRISTOPHER BUCKTIN

THE manhunt for the escaped killer ex-police officer known as 'the Devil of the Ozarks' has descended into a spectacle of failure and fear, as terrified communities hold their breath.

Cloaked in the shadows of the mountains he was once responsible for keeping safe, cold-blooded Grant Hardin has outwitted search teams for nearly two weeks.

Police say they have no idea where Hardin walks free and the FBI appears no closer to dragging him back to jail.

Since the former police chief fled Calico Rock prison in Arkansas on May 25, no-one has slept easily.

The convicted murderer and rapist walked through the front gate of the jail where he had been held since 2017 dressed as, of all things, a law enforcement officer.

Thousands in the local community now live in fear, thanks to the incom-petence of prison bosses.

And with 13 days now passed since Hardin vanished, US law enforce-ment, who have named him among the FBI's most wanted and are offering a $20,000 reward for his capture, are clueless as to where he could be.

"He knows every deer trail and fishing hole in the area," said Jesse Ray, a lifelong Baxter County resident. "He doesn't need GPS. He just needs time."

And time is just what search teams have afforded him - angering locals.

"I got daughters," said mechanic Mark Stevens. "You think I sleep easy knowing that b*****d might be camping two miles from my backyard?"