CLAYTON COUNTY, Ga. — A convicted killer who has been on the loose for weeks is now back in custody.
The U.S. Marshals Service confirmed to Channel 2 Action News that they captured Kathan Guzman on Friday in Ocoee, Florida. He was booked into the Orange County Jail and will be extradited to Georgia.
Guzman was mistakenly released from the Clayton County Jail on March 27, before he could be moved to prison. Clayton County Sheriff Levon Allen said Friday that disciplinary actions are pending for the staff responsible for it, and it may result in the termination of employees once the investigation is complete.
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Allen said staff looked at a court document for another charge that showed a motion to nolle prosse, or not prosecute. Had they looked further, they would have seen the jury convicted Guzman on felony murder and aggravated assault.
Guzman was convicted in October of killing his ex-girlfriend, 19-year-old Delila Grayson, and sentenced to life in prison without parole.
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Christina Grayson, the victim’s mother, lives in Kissimmee, Florida, and was concerned Guzman was back because he also used to live there.
“I felt like this morning, I felt like I was in prison and he was walking free,” she said Friday.
Grayson said she felt like had to look over her shoulder while Guzman was on the loose. And she could have had a close call with him because she was recently visiting Orlando, near where he was captured.
Now with his arrest, she has been set free.
“He’s where he should be,” she said.
She said she wants to make sure he doesn’t go back to the jail where he was released.
“Could a mistake happen again? Could he get out or free again?” Grayson said.
Allen explained that they did not alert the public initially because they did not want the convicted killer to know they were looking for him.
When Channel 2′s Tom Jones asked the sheriff how Guzman could think he wasn’t wanted by police, Allen said they learned Guzman told someone that “God is good” and believed his release was the result of a higher power.
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