INDIANAPOLIS — Kevin Mason was mistakenly released from the Marion County Jail on Sept. 13 at 11 a.m.
The Sheriff’s Office said deputies didn’t realize he was gone until 5:30 p.m. – six and a half hours later – when a detective notified MCSO.
Mason was on the run for two years after police say he shot and killed 29-year-old Dontevious Catchings outside of a Minneapolis church during a funeral in 2021.
Mason was arrested in Indianapolis on Sept. 11. Less than 48 hours later, he was released on a clerical error.
Preliminary information suggests the civilian clerk believed she was correcting duplicate bookings for the inmate and removed two holds in his file — One for murder, one for parole violation. The next day, a Minnesota clerk removed the final hold for a firearms charge. The mistake was not caught by clerks until the following day.
WRTV verified with Hennepin County in Minnesota, where the murder and firearms warrants were established, that the extradition of Mason was not waived and should not have been removed.
Two civilian Marion County clerks have been terminated from the agency, according to the sheriff's office.
"I've made it clear that we are short staffed and underpaid. That's not an excuse but it’s a fact," said Marion County Sheriff Kerry Forestal. "There are four layers they go through [before releasing an inmate]. This should not have happened. They're paid less than $20 an hour to do work and evaluate documents that are put together by lawyers and judges in court. It's a difficult job."
Sheriff Forestal believes Mason is still in the Indianapolis area.
He says officers from surrounding agencies have been following Mason's girlfriend, who picked him up from the jail.
"Last night, she traveled outside of her regular area, which is the Southport and Emerson area. There are a lot of hotels down there. She might be hiding him there. She's not cooperating," said Sheriff Forestal.
The mother of the man Mason is accused of killing says her family feels like they're living the nightmare all over again.
"I shouldn't have to go through this twice. It's like it hit me double time," said Sharita Catchings. "It's unbearable."
Catchings says the release of the man accused of murdering her son, Dontevious Catchings, isn't just a mistake by the Marion County Sheriff's Office.
It’s life changing for her family.
Deontevious was 29-years-old and a father of two. He never got to meet his second-born son.
"He was loved. To find out they finally caught this man after two years, and for him to walk out of there and have a sense of freedom, of joyness, like I escaped punishment, that is like a slap in our face all over again," said Catchings.
WRTV's Rachael Wilkerson asked Sheriff Forestal what he could say to the family.
"It's very unfortunate and I preferred this would not have happened. [MCSO] talked to the mother twice. He was on the run for two years. He was in custody for a short 48 hours. I'd rather no one get out of jail charged with murder. We are doing our best to recover him," he said.
The family said that's not enough. They want MCSO to be held accountable.
"I want the MCSO closed down. I really do," said Catchings.
So what is the sheriff's office doing to find Mason?
Teams from Lawrence, Speedway, Beech Grove and IMPD are doing surveillance right now on nearby homes to find Mason.
"Our plan is to look throughout city with uniform presence and make it unconformable for anyone keeping him. So if someone wants to get him out of your house, we will come by. You can put him on your porch. When we come by, we aren't going to knock the way we usually do and a reminder to Kevin Mason, you have opportunity to turn yourself in safe. Call 327-SAFE. A chaplain will answer the phone and arrange a safe surrender," said the sheriff.
The family also questions why the public wasn't notified sooner.
The sheriff told WRTV that the sheriff's office thought it was in their best advantage to keep quiet since they were tracking Mason's girlfriend's car. The plan was to follow her until they had Mason.
The agency says it notified Minnesota agencies of Mason's release.
There is a hot-line you can call if you have information on mason's whereabouts. That number is 317-327-7940.
Deeper dive into the case
Minnesota court documents give further insight into the criminal history of the man who was mistakenly released from Marion County Jail last week.
According to court documents, Mason of St. Paul, Minnesota has had numerous run-ins with law enforcement in the North Star State.
The most notable of Mason's past crimes, according to court documents, is a fatal shooting in June 2021 in Hennepin County, Minnesota.
According to court records, Mason was attending a funeral of a known gang member when he got into an altercation with another man, later identified as 29-year-old Dontevius Catchings.
At least one witness at the scene said Mason was bloodied and stopped fighting back in the altercation.
After Catchings walked away, Mason drew a gun and shot Catchings multiple times in the back, according to court documents.
In the probable cause affidavit for Mason's arrest, law enforcement acknowledges that Mason deleted his social media accounts and fled the state.
Mason had prior prison time spent for fleeing a peace officer and being a criminal in possession of a firearm.
