The Hindu : Kerala / Thiruvananthapuram News : Jail break: prisoner held

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Thursday, Jan 03, 2008
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Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram

Jail break: prisoner held

Staff Reporter

Thiruvananthapuram: The police today arrested one of the two prisoners who escaped from custody on the night of January 31.

Sunil Kumar, who is serving a jail sentence for sandalwood theft, was arrested from a private hospital near Nedumangadu.

The 26-year-old commerce graduate had got himself admitted to the hospital after he injured his hand while travelling to his father’s house in Nedumangadu in a public transport bus.

Sub-Inspector (Poojappura) J. Santosh Kumar said Sunil had accidentally dangled his hand out of the bus window. He lost much skin and muscle when his limb dashed against an overtaking bus. He underwent a skin and muscle grafting surgery at the hospital.

The hospital authorities got in touch with Sunil Kumar’s relatives who told them that he was a convict who had jumped prison. The hospital management immediately informed the police.

Sunil Kumar was produced before the court and remanded in judicial custody. Currently, he is under police watch in the special cell for prisoners at the Medical College Hospital. Sunil Kumar had only two more months of his sentence left. The police are puzzled why he escaped when his release from prison was imminent. Sunil Kumar and Biju Karthik had escaped while they were being brought back to the Central Prison here after an appearance at court in Ernakulam. The court had sentenced Biju Karthik, an under-trial prisoner till then, to two years of imprisonment for vehicle theft.

The police suspect that Biju Karthik had prompted Sunil Kumar to escape along with him. They attacked their police escorts near the main gate of the prison to make good their escape in the darkness at around 8.45 p.m.

According to the police, Biju and Sunil took two different directions. Sunil hid in a marshy area behind the Ananthapuri Wedding Hall till 4 a.m. Later, he walked to Neyyatinkara along the railway track before taking a bus to his father’s house in Nedumangadu.

The police have charged Sunil with jail break and assault on policemen. He could face up to two years of imprisonment if convicted. The police said they have stepped up their efforts to arrest Biju Karthik. Officers in plainclothes searched his house in Thumpa today. They believe Biju to have escaped to Tamil Nadu.

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