If your name is Rontralon and you were recently released from jail for murder charges in Louisiana, the Lafayette police chief would like to have a word with you.
A man charged with first-degree murder is back on the streets after he was mistakenly released from the Lafayette Parish jail.
Now law enforcement is searching for him, but he’s nowhere to be found.
Rontralon Joseph, 19, and D’ivion Francis, 17, were both indicted for first-degree murder in January, accused of killing 20-year-old Tiage Hudson in Lafayette.
Joseph was also facing charges of obstruction of justice, possession of a stolen firearm, and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle in addition to the first-degree murder charge.
He remained in the Lafayette Parish Jail on all four of these charges for almost a year, but that recently changed.
On November 16, Joseph posted a $5,000 bond for his charges of obstruction of justice, possession of a stolen firearm, and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle and walked right out of the jail and back on the streets.
With the first-degree murder charge, however, he was not eligible to post bail.
News 10’s investigation into what happened revealed that a grand jury indicted Joseph for first-degree murder in January, but the charge did not make it onto the written indictment.