Two prisoners escaped from Puzhal Central Prison in Chennai in separate incidents within a span of 24 hours, and one of them has been caught, police said on Thursday. The Puzhal police arrested a 21-year-old Nepali national who had escaped from the prison on Tuesday, while a search is on for another prisoner who escaped on Wednesday.

Source: The Hindu

A senior city police official said Sudeep Bogati, a native of Nepal who was residing at Padi in Chennai, was arrested on August 16 in connection with a theft at a private company and was lodged in the block designated for foreign nationals within the Puzhal Central Prison complex. On Tuesday morning, prisoners were released from their cells as per the daily routine, and prison authorities discovered in the evening that Bogati was missing. A case was registered at the Puzhal police station on the prison authorities' complaint.

Second prisoner walked away from prison shop

The second prisoner, Suresh, 41, of the Thirumangalam area, was arrested in 2021 in a case under the POCSO Act and lodged at Puzhal. Police said that, owing to a good conduct report, prison authorities had permitted him to go every morning to a shop located outside the prison to assist prison guards in their canteen work. On Wednesday at around 7 am, Suresh went to the shop as usual but did not return.

On Thursday, police said they had arrested Bogati after finding him wandering in the Thirumangalam area. The New Indian Express also reported that the escaped Nepalese undertrial prisoner from Puzhal jail was caught in the Anna Nagar area, and that the search for the second inmate was continuing.

Source: The New Indian Express via My Press Today

The Puzhal police have registered a case in the second escape as well and are on the lookout for the missing prisoner. The two escapes in quick succession have raised questions about supervision at the prison complex and at facilities run outside its walls.