Fugitives are hiding near the prison and 300 police officers are searching, says minister

The Minister of Justice, Ricardo Lewandowski, stated this Thursday (15) that a team made up of 300 police officers is looking for the two inmates who escaped from the Mossoró Federal Penitentiary, in Rio Grande do Norte. He highlighted that security cameras did not detect cars approaching the prison, so the fugitives may still be there. Furthermore, no thefts or vehicle thefts were reported, but a house was reportedly broken into in the region.

“We imagine that they are located within a perimeter of around 15 kilometers from the prison to the city center. It’s a forested place, a rural area, we imagine they are still in that region,” she said. Lewandowski held a press conference this afternoon to explain the operation to recapture the prisoners. This is the minister’s first public statement on the case. “Our greatest concern is with the recapture of the two fugitives,” he highlighted.

According to the Minister of Justice, around 100 agents from the Federal Police, 100 from the Federal Highway Police and 100 agents from local police forces are working on the searches. Additionally, three helicopters and drones are being used by the task force. “We have news that a rural house was broken into, where clothes and food were stolen, this could certainly be related to these two fugitives who are trying to survive in this area,” he said.

This Wednesday morning (14), two prisoners escaped from the maximum security unit. They would be linked to the Red Command and were previously detained in Rio Branco, in Acre. This is the first escape from a federal penitentiary since the system was created in 2006. The inmates were identified as Rogério da Silva Mendonça, alias Querubim, Chapa, Cabeça de Martelo or Martelo; and Deibson Cabral Nascimento, known as Tatu, Deisinho or Deicinho.

Minister says prisoners escaped through cell lamp

The minister stated that a “series of factors” caused the two inmates to escape, including the renovation of the prison, with tools that could have been scattered around the place. The investigation also showed that there were defects in the construction of the prison. According to the minister, the escape occurred through the cell’s lamp, which was not protected by a concrete slab.

“The escape took place from Carnival Tuesday to Wednesday, where, eventually, people were more relaxed, as they usually happen at this time,” said Lewandowski. According to him, another factor that contributed to the action was the internal renovation that the prison was undergoing.

“There were workers inside, tools, unfortunately the information we have is that the tools were not properly packed and locked, they were possibly scattered throughout the prison, within reach of the people who carried out this escape”, he pointed out.

The fugitives would have passed through the lamp to reach the “shaft”, an internal space made for the passage of installations and pipes. “They managed to get out through the lamp and entered what is called the shaft, that place where prison maintenance is carried out… From there, they managed to reach the roof of the prison system, there was no slab, no bars, no protection system”, he highlighted. the minister.

Lewandowski stated that when the two inmates overcame these obstacles they found tools that were used in the reform of the penitentiary. “They came across a metal fence, which was protecting the renovated site, this fence can be easily overcome. Then, with wire-cutting pliers, they cut the bars that separate them, so to speak, from the outside world,” he said.

Cameras did not work properly

The minister highlighted that some cameras and lamps “were not working properly”, which may have contributed to the escape. “Whose responsibility is this? Why did this occur? This will be the subject of investigations,” he said. He stated that, at the moment, two types of investigations are being carried out: one of an administrative nature, to determine disciplinary responsibilities, and another in the criminal sphere, conducted by the PF, to investigate whether employees of the prison unit helped in the escape.

Lewandowski stated that, initially, the investigation does not point to an orchestrated escape, planned with a lot of money. “It was an escape, I would say, at least initially, that was very cheap, that was carried out with what was found at the scene,” he said.

The Minister of Justice reinforced that the escape of the two inmates is “serious” and “cannot be minimized”, but it is an escape “that occurred due to a series of negative coincidences, fortuitous events and, unfortunately, facilitated the escape of these two criminals. Lewandowski also stated that, although worrying, the episode “does not affect the security of federal prisons”.

Earlier, federal judge Walter Nunes, inspector of the Federal Penitentiary of Mossoró (RN), also stated that investigators are investigating whether two cameras had detected the prisoners on the path they took between the cell and the exit from the prison. “It is certain that there was a failure to observe security protocols, which are rigidly established in a maximum security prison,” said the judge in an interview with GloboNews.

Nunes highlighted that the legislation prohibits surveillance cameras inside cells. The inspector pointed out that, despite there being images from some cameras, prison security did not realize that they were inmates trying to leave the penitentiary. “The problem is that he [o detento] He walked around inside the prison unit without being detected by the cameras, there are images, but it was not detected that he was a person leaving the prison unit”, he said.