April 03--The manhunt for a killer is in its third day after he walked out of the Kankakee County jail this week after beating a correctional officer and stealing his uniform. And Kankakee County Sheriff Tim Bukowski says he believes the wanted man, Kamron T. Taylor, is receiving help from someone.
Taylor is believed to be armed with a handgun and is very dangerous, Bukowski said.
"We know he has a weapon and will not hesitate to use it," the sheriff said. He would not say whether Taylor could be armed with the gun that belonged to the guard who was assaulted.
Taylor escaped early Wednesday from his two-person cell at the Jerome Combs Detention Center after the last security check, authorities said.
"We have pretty good idea how he got out (of his cell)," Bukowski said Thursday. "We just don't want to talk about it right now."
When the 38-year-old correctional officer, a 10-year employee who had been at work since 11 p.m. the previous night, entered the pod to conduct a routine check, Taylor attacked from the side, choked him and hit him on the head, officials said.
Taylor then took the officer's uniform and wore it to fool jail employees monitoring the three doors that stood between him and freedom. Bukowski said Taylor and his victim are both African-American and have similar builds.
Taylor walked out of the jail at 3:12 a.m. Wednesday, found the officer's car using a fob on the set of keys he'd stolen and drove away, authorities said. He abandoned the car in the 12000 block of South Lincoln Avenue about 8:30 a.m. Investigators were questioning Taylor's relatives and associates in the area, as well as inmates in the pod who were awakened by the struggle. They were also reviewing video related to Taylor's escape.
Bukowski said he visited the correctional officer who was attacked on Thursday and said his condition is improving, but he would not provide any further details at the request of the officer's family.
Bukowski also said officials believe Taylor is receiving help following his escape and said anyone who did so will have criminal charges.
"We have to believe that someone is helping him, concealing him," Bukowski said at a news conference Thursday. "We will prosecute those people to the full extent of the law. We are able analyze phone activities, visitor records, and have been interviewing inmates. Someone had to help him -- either met him and helped him to get out of the area, or is concealing him."
Teams from the Illinois State Police, the U.S. Marshals Service and other law enforcement agencies were analyzing tips and other information to guide their search of the Kankakee area, as well as other locations in Illinois and other states, Bukowski said.
On Thursday the victim's father, Nelson Williams Sr., 48, said his family was concerned about Taylor's escape and recalled threats Taylor made when he was convicted in February.
"We're laying low, trying to be cautious. We're careful about who's knocking on our doors," Williams said.
"When he disrupted the courtroom (after the guilty verdict) he was saying something like, 'I'm gonna get all of you' or something, But we figured, 'How's he gonna do that? He's gonna be gone for good.' But he proved us wrong."
Williams said he hopes Taylor will not harm himself or someone else and that he thinks it won't take long for police to recapture him. He said he hopes authorities will not have to use deadly force against the fugitive.
"Do not kill him, because I want him to go to prison and suffer," he said.
Taylor is awaiting sentencing for the June 2013 murder of Nelson Williams Jr. during a botched armed robbery.
Taylor is 5 feet 9 inches tall and about 170 pounds, according to authorities. Bukowski said there is a $5,000 reward for information leading to Taylor's capture. Anyone with information should call 911 or (815) 933-3324.
