K’taka prison break: One escaped convict shot, nabbed; hunt on for two others

Kalaburagi, July 15 (IANS) One of the three convicts who escaped from the Kalaburagi Central Prison in Karnataka by scaling the 20-foot-high compound wall was apprehended after a police encounter in the early hours of Wednesday, while an intensive search operation is underway to trace the remaining two fugitives.

The escaped convict, identified as Santhosh Basappa Metre (28) of Bidar district, sustained a gunshot injury to his right leg after allegedly attempting to attack police personnel during the operation near Humnabad Ring Road in an industrial area. Two police personnel, identified as Kalyani and Prakash, were injured in the incident and have been admitted to the hospital.

The daring prison break has caused considerable embarrassment to the state government, particularly as Kalaburagi is the home district of state Home Minister Priyank Kharge.

According to police, the three life convicts escaped from the Central Prison on Tuesday after cutting the grill of their barrack and scaling the prison’s 20-foot compound wall. CCTV footage reportedly captured the convicts walking freely after escaping and later boarding a vehicle.

Kalaburagi Police Commissioner S.D. Sharanappa said a case was registered at Farhatabad Police Station following a complaint by prison authorities, and multiple special teams were immediately constituted to trace the escapees.

“Three convicts escaped from Kalaburagi Central Prison yesterday. Two are convicted in rape and POCSO cases, while another is serving a sentence in a murder case. All three are natives of Bidar district,” Sharanappa told reporters.

He said inter-district special teams comprising personnel from Kalaburagi City Police, the North Eastern Range DIG’s office, and the Superintendents of Police of Bidar, Kalaburagi and Yadgir districts were deployed for the manhunt.

“The escaped prisoners avoided main roads and moved through agricultural fields. Based on our information, they initially moved in pairs before splitting up and travelling separately,” he said.

Acting on a tip-off received on Wednesday morning regarding the movement of a suspect near Humnabad Ring Road, police teams rushed to the spot and asked the accused to surrender.

“When police intercepted him, warning shots were fired into the air. However, he allegedly attempted to attack police personnel, forcing officers to open fire in self-defence. He sustained a gunshot injury to his right leg,” the Commissioner said.

Santhosh Basappa Metre, a resident of Santpur in Bidar district, was convicted in a rape and POCSO case and had been awarded life imprisonment. He had been lodged in Kalaburagi Central Prison since 2025.

Police said Santhosh had initially been moving with one of the other escapees, but the duo separated after noticing a heavy police presence on major roads.

“We cannot say where the other two are headed. Alerts have been issued across districts, and search operations are continuing,” Sharanappa added.

Authorities are continuing intensive combing operations across Kalaburagi and neighbouring districts to apprehend the remaining two escaped convicts.

It can be recalled that three convicted prisoners escaped from the high-security Kalaburagi Central Prison in the early hours of Tuesday, triggering a massive manhunt and raising serious concerns over prison security in Kalaburagi, the home district of Karnataka Home Minister Priyank Kharge.

The prisoners escaped at around 3 a.m. by scaling the prison’s 20-foot-high compound wall.

The escape has prompted the police department to sound a statewide alert, while prison authorities are investigating whether jail staff or other insiders assisted the inmates.

Besides Santhosh Basappa, the other two escaped prisoners were identified as Mastaan and Sagar.

According to police, the trio used blankets, clothes and pillow covers tied together to fashion a makeshift rope, enabling them to climb over the prison wall before fleeing.

Preliminary investigations suggest that the inmates had been planning the jailbreak for the past two to three days.

Investigators are also probing the possibility of insider involvement in the escape.

Suspicion has been raised that prison personnel may have assisted the inmates, as questions remain over why the prisoners, who were supposed to be confined to their prison cells during the night, were allegedly outside at the time of the escape.

The incident has also brought the functioning of the prison’s security system under scrutiny.

Despite round-the-clock surveillance, CCTV monitoring and security personnel deployed at the prison, including CISF personnel, the three inmates managed to escape without being intercepted.

Officials are treating the incident as a major security lapse, and disciplinary action is being considered against prison officers found negligent in the discharge of their duties.

Investigators are also trying to determine whether the inmates received external assistance after escaping from the prison.

–IANS

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