MUZAFFARABAD: The Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) police have arrested three of the 18 prisoners who had escaped from Poonch district jail in Rawalakot over the weekend, officials said on Friday.

The escapees, Muhammad Usman Afraz and Faizan Aziz, were apprehended by separate police teams during the night between Wednesday and Thur­sday, while the third, Noman Asif, was arrested on Thursday night.

Afraz, 24, who was sentenced to death for murder and terrorism, was one of six escapees for whom the government had announced a reward of Rs10 million each. Previously associated with the banned Tehreek-i-Tal­i­ban Pakistan, he was also invo­lved in planning the jailbreak, according to police sources.

Acting on shared intelligence, police and intelligence teams arrested Afraz from a “dhok” (high-altitude area where villagers move with their livestock in summers) in Singola on the outskirts of Rawalakot. Afraz resisted arrest, stabbing two policemen with a dagger and causing injuries that required hospitalisation, the sources said.

Faizan Aziz, facing trial in a murder case, was arrested in the Pothi Baghluta area, also on the outskirts of Rawalakot.

He was among eight escapees for whom a reward of Rs3 million each was announced by the government.

Noman Asif, sentenced to 25 years imprisonment for murder, was arrested near the Rawalakot Circuit House at 10pm on Thursday. His arrest was facilitated by his family, as police had detained some of his close relatives. Asif was among three escapees for whom the government had announced a cash reward of Rs5m each.

On Sunday afternoon, 19 prisoners had escaped from the district jail in Rawalakot, but one of them was injured in crossfire and later died.

SSP Poonch Riaz Mughal told Dawn that six teams were formed to apprehend the escapees, and they were working tirelessly to accomplish the task.

In addition to arresting 11 prison officials, including the superintendent and deputy superintendent, police had also taken into custody several people who had visited the prisoners before the jailbreak for investigation purposes, he confirmed.

Preliminary investigations suggested that negligence and dereliction of duty had directly and indirectly facilitated the jailbreak, SSP Mughal said.

He pointed out that the death row inmates were required to be kept in solitary confinement and in fetters, but it had emerged that they were unfettered and received visitors frequently, he added.

“We have also identified the man who smuggled a pistol into the prison and handed it to one of the escapees. He will be apprehended soon.”

“The way we are making every effort, I am fully confident that we will hunt all of them down shortly,” he vowed.

Published in Dawn, July 6th, 2024