Two of 3 inmates who escaped from Amritsar jail arrested

Police have arrested two of the three undertrial inmates who escaped from the high-security Amritsar central prison on the night of February 1, officials said on Friday.

Two more persons have been nabbed for sheltering and helping the duo in their house after the jailbreak, they said.

“The arrested escapees are Jarnail Singh of Hansanwala village of Tarn Taran and his brother Gurpreet Singh alias Gopi. Both are notorious criminals who are booked in five cases each of robberies and snatching. The third escapee Vishal Kumar is still on the run and efforts are on to nab him,” commissioner of police Sukhchain Singh Gill said.

He said Jarnail was arrested from near the bus stand at Anandpur Sahib on Thursday night. “During interrogation, he told the police that his brother Gopi is staying at the residence of his friend Shamsher Singh alias Shera at Jaura village in Tarn Taran district. Shera and Karnail Singh, who is also brother of the arrested escapees, were aiding them financially,” he said.

Gill said, “When the police party raided Shera’s residence, Gopi tried to flee by throwing hot tea on the cops resulting into a burn injury on the face of a constable, Charnamatbir Singh. Then, Gopi went to the rooftop and jumped from it. He fell on a heap of bricks and his leg was injured. Police arrested him and he is now undergoing treatment in a hospital.”

He added, “For sheltering and helping the escapees, Shera and Karnail were also arrested. Their questioning is on and we will soon arrest the third escapee who is facing trial for allegedly raping a minor girl.”

Paramjit Kaur, sister of the duo, and her husband Sukhwinder Singh were arrested on February 5 for giving them shelter at a rented house in Chohla Sahib in Tarn Taran district.

The three inmates had escaped by removing bricks of their barrack and then scaling the inner and outer walls of the complex.

“The two brothers planned to escape earlier too— a month after their arrest in July last year and they made four other inmates part of this plan. However, they did not implement it as one inmate was shifted to the Faridkot jail,” police officials said.

On February 3, the police had arrested two wardens and a home guard deployed at the prison in connection with the jailbreak. Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh has already ordered a magisterial inquiry into the case.