A special police team has brought back one of the escaped inmates to the Government Place of Safety in Vellore on Saturday after he was nabbed from his hideout in Chennai.
Police said that based on an alert from Chennai police, a special team from the district police in Vellore rushed to Chennai where they nabbed the inmate from a hideout at Tondiarpet. Later, the inmate was brought to the facility in Vellore by road. “After escaping from the facility, the group split and went on their own ways. We have sent teams to four places based on specific inputs. We will bring them back in the next few days,” S. Rajesh Kannan, SP (Vellore), told The Hindu.
Six inmates had escaped from the facility, after allegedly attacking three staff members, including the Chief Guard of the facility. Police said that it was around 7.30 p.m. on March 27 (Monday) when the six inmates, said to be in the age group of 17-18 years, escaped from the institution, which holds children in conflict with law under observation. The facility, which has 42 inmates in it, has been maintained by the Department of Social Welfare and monitored by the Juvenile Justice Board. Monday’s escape by inmates was the sixth incident in the facility since its inception in 2019.
Subsequently, Minister for Social Welfare and Women Empowerment P. Geetha Jeevan inspected the facility along with Collector P. Kumaravel Pandian and other officials. As part of safety measures, the height of the existing compound wall of the facility is being raised by additional five feet of fencing. CCTV cameras at the facility are also being closely monitored.
