53 inmates escape from Indonesia prison
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JAKARTA – More than 50 inmates broke out from a prison in Sorong in South-west Papua Province, east Indonesia, on Jan 7, said officials.
Out of the 53 prisoners who escaped from the Class II B Penitentiary of Sorong Prison, only six were taken back into custody, said Sorong City Police Chief Commissioner Happy Perdana Yudianto about the incident, which happened at around 11am (10am Singapore time).
The police are trying to re-arrest the inmates.
“The efforts we have made are also blocking roads outside Sorong City, the port and airport while collecting data on (the) escaped prisoners,” said Mr Happy.
He said the prisoners who escaped had been convicted of general crime and drug offences.
Sorong Prison head Manuel Yenusi said that before the mass escape, there was a Sunday morning prayer service.
“However, at around 11am, the service ended; it turned out that the prisoners broke into (the) security (post), threatened two guard officers and threw firecrackers until there was an explosion. Then, dozens of prisoners escaped,” said Mr Manuel.
Before the mass jailbreak, Sorong Prison held 543 inmates, which far exceeded its capacity of 250. XINHUA
