THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Raising serious concerns over the efficacy of the security measures put in place at the Poojappura Central Prison in the city, a convict escaped from the Prison on Tuesday. The escaped inmate, Manoj, alias Manikuttan, 26, was undergoing a two-year sentence in a sexual harassment case. According to sources, the jailbreak occurred around 11.30 am. Manikuttan escaped from the paddyfield on the prison campus where he was taken for work along with other prisoners early in the morning. The 20-member group of prisoners was accompanied by only one prison guard. However, the prison guards noticed that Manikuttan was missing when the prisoners were being taken back to their cells after work. Manikuttan, hailing from Peerumedu in Idukki district, was brought to the Central Prison on February 23, 2011, after he was convicted by the Sessions Court in Kattappana in a case of sexually abusing a woman. The Poojappura police have registered a case in connection with the jailbreak and launched an intense search for Manikuttan. The relatives and friends of Manikuttan have also been brought under the scanner. The incident has been taken seriously by the top brass of the Prisons Department, who said that stringent action would be initiated as the prison houses several high-profile prisoners, including suspected Lashkar-e-Toiba operatives Thadiyantavide Nazir, Yousuf and Shabaz. Additional Director General of Police (ADGP), Prisons, Alexander Jacob, has ordered a Department-level inquiry. Deputy Inspector General of Police, Prisons, Gopakumar was directed by the ADGP to submit the inquiry report on Tuesday itself.
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