The 56-year-old was arrested on Friday barely 2.5 kilometers from the prison where he had been sitting since 2017, sentenced to 80 years in prison for murder the same year and rape of a teacher 20 years earlier.
Hardin, who had served as police chief in the small town where he shot and killed a 59-year-old man, escaped from prison by dressing up in a homemade prison guard uniform and being released.
The authorities have been chasing him with drones, bloodhounds and a helicopter. Heavy rain in the area has limited the search efforts – but likely also the escaped murderer – according to a spokesperson for the prison service in Arkansas.
The nickname "The Devil in the Ozark Mountains" comes from a TV documentary about Hardin. He has now been taken to a prison with the highest security class.
