RAWALPINDI: After the escape of an undertrial prisoner, the police have decided to seek the Counter Terrorism Department’s (CTD) assistance to guard undertrial prisoners while moving them from the prison to the district court.

Mustafa Ali, a prisoner, escaped from temporary lockup on Wednesday, leading to the registration of a case against four police officials including the lockup’s in-charge, and their subsequent arrests.

His escape came to light when the prisoners were being sent back to Adiala jail after their court proceedings. Mr Ali was being held for his alleged involvement in robberies.

Police said Mr Ali and his brother Ahmed Ali was arrested by Sadiqabad police in August 2016, and was then sent to prison by the court.

On Wednesday, Mr Ali was shifted to the temporary lockup on the district court premises with 50 other prisoners to attend his trial.

Police said he had already been declared a hardened criminal by the police, and went missing due to the crowd of prisoners. The police who were guarding the prisoners attempted to trace him, but were unsuccessful.

The lockup in-charge Assistant Sub-Inspector Khalid Mehmood, guard Idris Ahmed and two other police officials, Farhat Mehmood and Waqar Ahmed, were arrested on charges of negligence.

Taking notice of the prisoner’s escape, Regional Police Officer Mohammad Sultan Raja visited the Central Jail Adiala on Thursday to review its security arrangements.

He was also briefed by Jail Superintendent Saeedullah Gondal on the security measures established by the jail authorities.

Mr Raja directed the authorities to install more CCTV cameras and upgrade the control room, to improve the monitoring of the inner and outer cordon security.

He also directed them to devise new standard operating procedures for the security of under trial prisoners while they are moved from the prison to the courts.

He told the jail authorities to deploy a team of CTD and police personnel to guard prisoners involved in heinous crimes.

Meanwhile, police efforts to locate the escaped prisoner are underway.

Published in Dawn, February 10th, 2017