Another prison escapee nabbed, cops intensify search for remaining five

JELEBU: One of the six prisoners on the run after escaping from the Jelebu prison here yesterday was arrested by the police in Kampung Petasih Tengah, Pertang, near here early today.

Jelebu district police chief DSP Maslan Udin said the detainee, Mohd Zairizan Zainal, 42, who is awaiting trial for murder, was arrested at about 5.15 am.

"The man had broken into a village home and attempted to steal a Proton Waja car, but was intercepted before being caught by villagers and the police.

"This takes the number of arrests to two out of the seven who escaped from the prison yesterday," he told a media conference at the district police headquarters here today.

The first escapee caught was Sohaimi Khalid, in his 50s, who was rearrested at about 7 pm yesterday at an oil palm smallholding in Kangkoi some two kilometres from here.

Police obtained a remand order on Sohaimi today and will work on getting one for Mohd Zairizan tomorrow at the Jelebu court, Maslan said.

He said police investigations found that the 6 am incident happened at the prison's Muhasabah 2 block where the seven are believed to have escaped through a hole in the ceiling, and later through another hole in the fence, which was suspected to have been cut using a wire cutter.

Following that, the police set up four roadblocks at the Jelebu border, namely Nilai, Kuala Pilah and Jempol in an effort to track down all those who escaped, including with the help of the Tracker Dog Unit (K9) of the Negeri Sembilan Police Contingent Headquarters and Jelebu Prison.

Meanwhile, he said the five remaining escapees, all of whom are awaiting trial for charges under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, are believed to have changed clothes after escaping, adding that they could be hiding in village fringes.

Police are focusing their search on areas around Pertang.

The five still on the run are Muhammad Syafiq Rohmat, 32; Shazuan Md Sharif, 32; Mazlan Samah, 39; Mohamad Aminuddin Khan Mohd Yusof, 28; and an Indonesian, only known as Zainuddin, 62.

Maslan urged those with any information on the matter to contact the nearest police station, the Jelebu IPD at 06-6136222 or investigation officer Inspector Zuria Anis Mahassan at 016-6096996.

-- BERNAMA