19 individuals, including six on suicide column, escaped from Pakistan- occupied Kashmir’s Rawalkot jail. One of the prisoners, however, got injured during the exit and afterward died at a nearby hospital.
A prisoner asked a sentry to move his “lassi” ( a yogurt-based beverage ) outside his barracks between 2 pm and 2: 30 pm on Sunday. When the soldier obliged, the slave abused him, stole his locks, and opened another camp where at least 19 captives made their way to the main doorway, according to Dawn citing authorities.
A handgun was thrown through the roof at the time to tear the lock. One slave was injured during the gunshots, but the others managed to escape, they said.
Despite ideas for a new prison on the outskirts, development has been minimal. Following the hack, authorities took eight jail officials, including the deputy director, into captivity for analysis. Also, the PoK’s government quickly formed an inquiry commission to investigate the incident within a year.
Data director Ansar Yaqoob disclosed in a late-night statement that PoK’s prime minister Chaudhry Anwarul Haq had suspended some prison officials and had fired specific home secretary Badar Munir from his place as ex-officio inspector general of prisons. Munir later transferred to the service division as OSD.
Six death row inmates, apparently led by Ghazi Shahzad from Sudhnoti region in PoK, who was detained by the counter-terrorism office the previous month along with three partners from Hajira town, were among the fugitives. Shahzad, booked under the anti- violence work and APC Section 302, had yet to be convicted. Importantly, his three associates remained in captivity, as did another person involved in a previous event, reported Dawn.
Authorities identified the escaped prisoners Mohammad Khayyam and the dying prisoner from Mutyalmera village in additional details. Police stepped up protection in the division following the incident, sealing all Poonch entrance and exit points to aid in the capture of the prisoners.
