Two inmates escaped from Chennai’s high-security Puzhal Central Prison in separate incidents within 24 hours, prompting prison authorities and police to launch a search operation across north Chennai and monitor transport hubs and exit points.
According to a report by DT Next, Nepali undertrial prisoner Sujith Buhari, 21, was found missing from the remand prison block on Tuesday evening. Prison warders noticed his absence during the evening muster, after which authorities conducted a search of the prison campus but could not locate him.
Buhari had been lodged in the prison for about two months. Police sources told DT Next that his family had migrated to Chennai and was living in the city. He had previously worked at a hardware store and was arrested after allegedly stealing from his employer, the report said.
Prison sources said inmates are permitted to leave their cells at 6 am and move within designated areas. Buhari had reportedly been sweeping the block with other prisoners when he sought permission from a prison official to visit the hospital. He then allegedly escaped. Police suspect that he may have scaled the prison wall, although prison sources considered that possibility unlikely and were questioning other inmates about whether the escape had been planned.
In a separate incident, a convict identified as Suresh went missing on Tuesday morning from the convict prison. Suresh was serving a sentence in a case under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act and had been assigned to work at the prison-run petrol bunk.
He is believed to have escaped while carrying out the duty outside the main prison area. According to the report, Suresh was attending to customers when he allegedly slipped away amid the crowd.
Prison authorities filed complaints with Puzhal police on Wednesday regarding both incidents. More than a dozen special teams have been formed to trace the two escaped inmates. Police teams are contacting their family members and known associates to gather information about their movements and possible getaway plans.
The police have also begun monitoring checkposts, bus termini and exit points in and around Puzhal and north Chennai. The two incidents have placed attention on the security arrangements governing inmate movement between prison blocks, work assignments and other designated areas within and outside the prison campus.
The search operation remains underway, with police and prison authorities continuing efforts to locate both inmates.
