Kathan Guzman, 22, was supposed to spend the rest of his life in prison after admitting he strangled his girlfriend Delila Grayson.
Share and Follow

The US Marshals Service said that a convicted killer who was mistakenly released from a Georgia jail has been caught two weeks later in Florida — ending days of anxiety for the victim’s family outside Orlando who feared he might harm them over their role in the trial.

Kathan Guzman, 22, was supposed to spend the rest of his life in prison after admitting he strangled his girlfriend, 19-year-old Delila Grayson, who was found dead in a bathtub in August 2022, Clayton County Sheriff Levon Allen told WSB-TV.

However, jail workers in the county south of Atlanta mistakenly released Guzman on March 27 because they didn’t read paperwork carefully, failing to see that he’d been convicted of murder and assault by strangulation, the sheriff told the broadcaster.

Kathan Guzman, 22, was supposed to spend the rest of his life in prison after admitting he strangled his girlfriend Delila Grayson.
Kathan Guzman, 22, was supposed to spend the rest of his life in prison after admitting he strangled his girlfriend Delila Grayson. (Orange County Sheriff’s Office via AP)

In a statement on Friday, he said disciplinary actions are pending and firings are on the table.

Guzman told someone after being freed that “God is good” and he believed his release was the result of a higher power, the sheriff told WSB.

The victim’s mother, Christina Grayson, wasn’t told her daughter’s murderer was on the loose until Tuesday, after the district attorney learned of it, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

“I feel like I’m a sitting duck,” Grayson told WFTV-TV in Orlando.

Her family was sleeping in shifts so that someone was awake at all times, she told the broadcaster, and deputies in Osceola County patrolled her neighborhood as the search continued.

Guzman was arrested “without incident” Friday at a residence in Ocoee, near Orlando, the US Marshals Service said. Booking records showed he was being held in the Orange County Jail.

“Today we tracked him down and got him in custody,” said Michael Sonethavilay, deputy commander of the agency’s Florida/Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force.

The agency’s Southeast Regional Task Force, based in Atlanta, “did some digging and found some information that he may be in Florida,” Sonethavilay said.

They got in touch with the Florida task force, which worked with the Orange County Sheriff’s Office and picked him up.

On Tuesday, the Georgia Office of Victim Services had discovered it couldn’t locate Guzman in the corrections system and notified the prosecutor’s office, Clayton County District Attorney Tasha Mosley said in a statement.

Mosley said her employees then checked the jail’s computer system, which appeared to show Guzman had been let go, so they immediately notified the sheriff.

“All appropriate paperwork was sent to the appropriate people. I have no idea why they released this man,” Mosley told the Atlanta newspaper.

“We are just as disappointed and pissed off as everybody else.”

Share and Follow
You May Also Like
Australia shuts Philippines embassy as 'super typhoon' claims lives

Australia Closes Embassy in the Philippines Amid Deadly ‘Super Typhoon’ Impact

Australia’s embassy in the Philippines will close today due to the dangerous…
Kellie Sloane, Liberal Vaucluse MP in Sydney, speaks about threats she has received after condemning a neo-nazi protest in Sydney.

MPs Targeted by Neo-Nazi Rally Threats: Urgent Police Investigation Launched

Kellie Sloane, representing the Liberal Party for Vaucluse, and Allegra Spender, the…

US Senate Initiates Resolution to Conclude Record-Breaking Government Shutdown

The US Senate on Monday moved forward on a measure aimed at…
Trump pardons Rudy Giuliani, others involved in efforts to overturn 2020 election

Breaking News: Trump Grants Pardons to Giuliani and Key Figures in 2020 Election Controversy

US President Donald Trump has pardoned his former personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani,…
BBC faces leadership crisis after news bosses quit over Trump edit

BBC Leadership in Turmoil as Top News Executives Resign Following Trump Broadcast Controversy

The BBC is currently embroiled in a leadership turmoil as it grapples…
The Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung people have filed a native title claim with the federal court over Melbourne and surrounding suburbs.

Breaking News: Native Title Claim Set to Transform Melbourne and Its Surrounding Regions

The Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung people have initiated a native title claim with the…
Disgraced footy star who was jailed for smuggling 2kg of ice takes a HUGE step towards getting his life back on track

Former football star, previously imprisoned for smuggling 2kg of methamphetamine, makes significant strides in rebuilding his life.

Former NRL star Manu Vatuvei has announced an exciting new milestone in…
Road rage dispute that led to man's death either murder or self-defence, court hears

Shocking Verdict: Driver Cleared of Murder in Intense Road Rage Pursuit

A motorist has been cleared of murder charges after a man wielding…