THENI (TAMIL NADU): Less than 24 hours after 17 remand prisoners escaped from a sub-jail in Theni in the biggest jailbreak in Tamil Nadu in three decades, police recaptured 13 of them following an extensive manhunt involving scores of personnel and drones.Four escapees were caught during an overnight search, while another was trapped and brought back to prison by an alert auto driver. The remainder were traced to the forest near the prison with the help of drones and apprehended.Police have tightened surveillance along the inter-state border and sought assistance from Keralam as they suspected they might sneak into the neighbouring state. Efforts were on to trace the remaining fourprisoners.DGP (prisons) Sandeep Rai Rathore attributed the escape to “human error” and a breach of security protocol. Nine prison staff members have been suspended for negligence, while a detailed probe is underway. The incident has also exposed security lapses as the centralised siren system was not functioning when the inmates escaped.Opposition leaders targeted TVK govt, describing the incident as a sign of total breakdown of law and order. Chief minister C Joseph Vijay did not respond to the criticism. Prisons department minister CTR Nirmalkumar, however, said govt would ensure that all the escaped prisoners were recaptured.Preliminary inquiries revealed five of the prisoners, accused in a murder case, had planned the escape and others joined them. Prison officials said one inmate faked an epileptic seizure around 10.30 pm on Monday. When a member of prison staff came to his rescue, other inmates threw a blanket over him, assaulted him and snatched the keys. They attacked other personnel, too, before fleeing through the main entrance. One guard was severely injured.The first breakthrough after the escape came around 1 am on Tuesday. One of the escapees who hid behind bushes near a watchtower outside the prison premises, found himself unable to proceed after thorns. He was apprehended near the tower.By then a search had been launched. Around 6.45am, police caught three more inmates. They deployed drones to scan the terrain. That and inputs from locals helped them nab the other fugitives. Police said one group had planned to walk up to a nearby station and escape by train.
