News / Local
Khami Prison escapee captured
20 Apr 2012 at 05:28hrs | Views
POLICE in Bulawayo have re-arrested one of the three dangerous criminals who escaped from Mlondolozi Prison, which is housed at Khami Prison Complex.
Bulawayo provincial police spokesperson Inspector Mandlenkosi Moyo said Blessing Gorezara, who is facing a charge of murder, was re-arrested in Woodville in the early hours of Independence Day.
The police spokesperson said at 12.35am, on Independence Day, a relative of Gorezara went to Queens Park Police Station where he made a report that the murder suspect was at his house in Woodville.
Gorezara, who was found asleep, had sought refuge at the house.
The trio reportedly escaped in the early hours of last Saturday and the escape was discovered at about 6am the same day.
The trio had stayed for less than six months at Mlondolozi, a prison mental institution, which partly houses female inmates.
The trio was sent to the institution after allegedly faking that they were mentally challenged.
Mlondolozi houses prisoners who are diagnosed to be mentally challenged and magistrates normally order that two Government doctors examine them to ascertain their mental state before they are seen by a psychiatrist.
Once the psychiatrist certifies them to be mentally challenged, they are then tried under the Mental Health Act and the sentence is committed to a mental institution where they receive treatment until they are deemed to have recovered.
Gorezara (24), of Nketa 9 in Bulawayo, was arrested for allegedly killing a child in Lobengula Extension on 26 June 2010, whose head he cut off before putting it in a bag and jumping into a hearse belonging to a funeral parlour.
The vehicle reportedly drove off the time he jumped into it and a mob had gathered to mete instant justice on him.
Nkosizile (25), from Nhlozamandla Village under Chief Sigola in Umzingwane District, is facing allegations of stealing a Mazda 323 from a house in Magwegwe on 3 March last year.
Nqobile (29) of Nketa 8 in Bulawayo is facing two counts of armed robbery that he allegedly committed in 2008.
He pleaded not guilty to the charges and the matter went to trial and after the State had closed its case and he was about to open his defence case, Nqobile started behaving strangely.
This prompted the trial magistrate at the Bulawayo regional courts to order that two doctors ascertain his mental state.
The trio was reportedly present in the cells when a handover-takeover was done at 10pm on Friday last week and the escape was discovered on Saturday at about 6am when a roll call was done.
They allegedly broke a door to the cell before breaking the outer door leading to the yard. They then broke the door to the watching tower before climbing to the roof of the cells.
They then walked for about 20 metres on the roof in the western direction before jumping on to the ground and disappearing.
In what appears to be a well-calculated escape, the trio allegedly stole civilian clothes belonging to new inmates and left behind their prison garb.
Sources privy to the set up at Mlondolozi Prison claimed that there is no lighting at the complex and that the trio might have taken advantage of the darkness.
Bulawayo provincial police spokesperson Inspector Mandlenkosi Moyo said Blessing Gorezara, who is facing a charge of murder, was re-arrested in Woodville in the early hours of Independence Day.
The police spokesperson said at 12.35am, on Independence Day, a relative of Gorezara went to Queens Park Police Station where he made a report that the murder suspect was at his house in Woodville.
Gorezara, who was found asleep, had sought refuge at the house.
The trio reportedly escaped in the early hours of last Saturday and the escape was discovered at about 6am the same day.
The trio had stayed for less than six months at Mlondolozi, a prison mental institution, which partly houses female inmates.
The trio was sent to the institution after allegedly faking that they were mentally challenged.
Mlondolozi houses prisoners who are diagnosed to be mentally challenged and magistrates normally order that two Government doctors examine them to ascertain their mental state before they are seen by a psychiatrist.
Once the psychiatrist certifies them to be mentally challenged, they are then tried under the Mental Health Act and the sentence is committed to a mental institution where they receive treatment until they are deemed to have recovered.
Gorezara (24), of Nketa 9 in Bulawayo, was arrested for allegedly killing a child in Lobengula Extension on 26 June 2010, whose head he cut off before putting it in a bag and jumping into a hearse belonging to a funeral parlour.
Nkosizile (25), from Nhlozamandla Village under Chief Sigola in Umzingwane District, is facing allegations of stealing a Mazda 323 from a house in Magwegwe on 3 March last year.
Nqobile (29) of Nketa 8 in Bulawayo is facing two counts of armed robbery that he allegedly committed in 2008.
He pleaded not guilty to the charges and the matter went to trial and after the State had closed its case and he was about to open his defence case, Nqobile started behaving strangely.
This prompted the trial magistrate at the Bulawayo regional courts to order that two doctors ascertain his mental state.
The trio was reportedly present in the cells when a handover-takeover was done at 10pm on Friday last week and the escape was discovered on Saturday at about 6am when a roll call was done.
They allegedly broke a door to the cell before breaking the outer door leading to the yard. They then broke the door to the watching tower before climbing to the roof of the cells.
They then walked for about 20 metres on the roof in the western direction before jumping on to the ground and disappearing.
In what appears to be a well-calculated escape, the trio allegedly stole civilian clothes belonging to new inmates and left behind their prison garb.
Sources privy to the set up at Mlondolozi Prison claimed that there is no lighting at the complex and that the trio might have taken advantage of the darkness.
Source - chronicle
