5 policemen held for facilitating jailbreak

SHILLONG, Sep 11: Police have arrested five staff of Jowai district jail for lapses in duty leading to the daring escape by the six UTPs. A police source told The Shillong Times that the arrested personnel had allegedly conspired with the six UTPs and facilitated their escape. The arrested personnel included jail head warder Rajesh Swer, jail warders Pyndapbor Bamon and Chamilan Kynjing and temporary warders Damelahun Sunn and Alexius Iawram.
Saturday’s jailbreak episode is not an isolated case. Several prisoners, some of them hardened criminals, have made good their escape from Jowai district jail in the past.
On June 22 last, murder convict Shiningstar Pala escaped after he was asked by the jail authorities to wash an ambulance used to ferry prisoners. In January 2021, Small Phawa who was convicted for 10 years in a POCSO case and Kwall Laloo who was serving a jail term for murder, escaped after they were taken to Jowai Civil Hospital.