Theni (Tamil Nadu): Seventeen inmates escaped from a sub-jail in Tamil Nadu’s Theni district late Monday night after allegedly attacking prison staff. A search operation has been intensified across neighboring districts. Police have arrested one of the escapees, and 17 special teams have been formed to track down the remaining 16.
Inspector General of Police (South Zone) Vijayendra Bidari stated that the arrested individual is a resident of Madurai. He was apprehended during a search operation in the forested area behind the Thekkampatti sub-jail. “During the search operation, the police managed to arrest one of the escaped inmates,” Bidari said.
According to the police, all 17 inmates were housed in the same barracks. Prison staff were alerted that one of the inmates was unwell; however, when they arrived at the barracks, the inmates allegedly attacked them and managed to escape. Bidari noted that the inmates had orchestrated the escape by “faking an epileptic seizure.”
In the alleged attack, Thangapandi, a Grade-II police officer stationed at the Theni district jail, sustained a head injury. He has been admitted to a government hospital in G. Vilakku. Two other prison staff members also sustained minor injuries, police said.
Dindigul Superintendent of Police S. Jayakumar stated that, as a precautionary measure, checkpoints have been set up at 16 locations across the district. Vehicles are also being inspected along the Dindigul-Theni highway.
Police forces in Madurai, Dindigul, and Idukki have been placed on high alert. Photographs of the escaped inmates have been circulated among officials to assist in their identification. A case has been registered in this matter, and an investigation is underway.
DMK MP P. Wilson also responded to the incident from a political standpoint. In a post on X, he described the incident as “shameful” and criticized the handling of the law-and-order situation in the state. Demanding his resignation, Wilson stated that C. Joseph Vijay should take moral responsibility for the alleged collapse of law and order in Tamil Nadu.
