AIZAWL: Five Myanmarese prisoners, including three convicts, escaped from south Mizoram's Lunglei district jail in a daring jailbreak through the wall of a toilet in the wee hours of Wednesday.
The prisoners escaped by breaking the bricks of a wall in the toilet of the jail’s Ward 2 on Wednesday morning, Mizoram police said.
Lunglei district jail superintendent Zosanga informed that the jailbreak happened between 1.30 and 2.15 AM in the wee hours of Wednesday.
The escapees are said to have climbed over 20-foot barriers with 15 feet of barbed wire on top before breaking the bricks in the toilet and escaping.
All the five escapees are Myanmar nationals and had been booked for crimes like narcotics trafficking and murder.
Of the five, one of the escaped prisoners named Lalchawimawia (24) was recently convicted for killing a 49-year-old woman in Lunglei. The convict Lalchawimawia is said to have murdered T. Vanlalduati on September 6, 2021, with a machete after robbing her.
Although Lalchawimawia was residing at Thangte village in Lunglei district, he is originally from Myanmar.
The other four escapees, namely Lalbawihliana (27), Dokapthang (26) Haudeihchhin (25) and Vanneihthanga (38), had been arrested for possession or trafficking of heroin from Myanmar. The four escapees had been booked under the Narcotics act.
Apart from Lalchawimawia, two others named Lalbawihliana and Vanneihthanga were undergoing jail terms after sentencing by courts. Dokapthang and Haudeihchhin were under trial prisoners lodged in the jail.
Out of the seven duty posts along the walls of the jail, only three were manned by Mizoram Home Guards while the remaining four were unmanned allegedly due to lack of manpower. A security lapse due to the dearth of manpower has been suspected.
Lunglei jail is also said to be unrepaired and portions of it are allegedly in a rundown condition.
A massive manhunt has been launched to nab the escaped inmates, police said.
Police also warned that the escaped prisoners might be dangerous and asked people to be careful.
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