One of seven Groenpunt inmates re-arrested hours after escaping
The acting national commissioner of the department of correctional services (DCS) on Thursday lauded law enforcement agencies for the “swift arrest” of an inmate who escaped from the Groenpunt Correctional Centre. The other six prisoners involved in the jailbreak‚ however‚ remain at large.According to officials from the DCS Free State/Northern Cape Region‚ they broke out of Groenpunt at about 2am on Thursday.“Investigations are continuing‚ which will confirm how the escape occurred‚” a DCS statement said. “The necessary protocols were immediately activated‚ and all law enforcement agencies responded immediately‚” acting DCS commissioner ZI Modise said.“Due to the swift response of law enforcement officials‚ one inmate was re-arrested. Officials are currently working around-the-clock to ensure the re-arrest of the other six offenders.”Modise said that DCS has made “significant progress in terms of preventing escapes” from correctional facilities in recent years.“This includes the reduction of escapes to 0.024% - or 38 out of 159,000 inmates - by the end of December 2014‚ which is a continued improvement from previous years.”..
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