How 4 death row inmates escaped prison

All four were death row inmates and they had been in the same cell for 26 days. It was in that condemned cell that they planned their escape by making a hole in the prison ceiling.

Using the handle of an aluminum bucket, they poked and prodded the bricks and mortar ceiling for days after days. They covered the hole with a towel. Later, when the opportunity arose, the four went out through the hole in the roof of the prison cell.

This incident took place at the Jaleshwari Tola district jail in Bogura on Tuesday (25 June) night after they meticulously planned and executed their breakout in over 25 days.

Superintendent of Police Sudip Kumar Chakraborty provided a detailed account of the escape at a press conference.

After breaking through the ceiling, the inmates encountered an open space in front of their condemned cell. They navigated through the open space and had to pass through another iron cage like barrier and then they were faced with the high boundary wall of the prison. Using bed sheets, towels, and lungis tied together to form a rope, they scaled the wall and escaped around 3:05am.

The condemned cell at the Bogura Central Jail where the four death row convicts escaped from, but were arrested shortly after on 26 June. Photo: Collected

After scaling the wall, the inmates headed toward the Korotoa riverbank, planning to use it as their escape route. However, they were spotted and recaptured within an hour.

The news of the escape quickly spread, prompting a city-wide alert. The police set up vigilante patrols, and around 4.15am, locals caught the escapees near the fish market in Chelopara, about half a kilometer from the prison. They were handed over to the police immediately.

"Around 3am on Tuesday night, the four inmates made a hole in the ceiling and escaped. They used bed sheets to climb over the wall. Multiple police teams started searching the city at 3.55am after receiving the news. By 4.:0am, all four were arrested from Chelopara market in the city," said SP Sudip Kumar Chakraborty.

The arrested escapees are Nazrul Islam alias Majnu, 60, Amir Hamza alias Amir Hossain, 41, Zakaria, 34, and Farid Sheikh, 30. All four were on death row for murder.

According to the district police, the ceiling of the British-era prison cell was made of brick, sand, and lime mortar without any reinforcement like iron rods, which allowed the inmates to break through. Using a 4.10-inch iron plate and a 7-inch screwdriver, the four inmates took over 20 days to gradually scrape the ceiling. They covered the hole with a towel during the day.

The escape raises questions about the prison's security lapses. Many CCTV cameras in the prison were not operational, and the prison, which has a capacity of 700 inmates, was holding over 2,200. The four inmates were crammed into one cell, making it difficult for prison guards to monitor them effectively.

An officer involved in questioning the inmates said they headed north along the riverbank toward the under-construction Fateh Ali Bridge. They were caught by locals who became suspicious after their story of being masons beaten by their owner did not seem credible.

The locals then informed Ward 6 Councilor Porimal Chandra Das, who advised them to hand the inmates over to the police.

Bogura District Commissioner Saiful Islam confirmed that the four inmates had been placed together in the condemned cell on 1 June. "On 2 June, during a prison inspection, I saw them together in the condemned cell. Within 25 days, they planned and executed their escape," he said.

Authorities are now investigating how the inmates obtained the tools used in the escape and addressing the security shortcomings that allowed such a breach to occur.