Four armed men who broke an inmate free from a prison truck and drove him to safety in southern Shan State last week were hired by his father, according to police.
On 15 June, Khun Nan, 23, who stands accused of drug smuggling, was broken free by four men carrying small arms while he was being escorted back to prison in Yawnghwe [Nyaung Shwe] from a court hearing in Taunggyi.
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In the days that followed, police arrested two men, Khun Chit Maung and Maung Nan, for involvement in the holdup, then on 20 June recaptured Khun Nan along with weapons, said Pol-Supt Min Tin of Yawnghwe police station.
“On Saturday, police recaptured drug suspect Khun Nan hiding in the woods near the village of Konemo in Ayethayar Township [just west of Taunggyi]. He was armed,” said the police superintendent. “He was captured following the questioning of two locals: Ma Thein May, who had been delivering food to him; and motorbike taxi driver Maung Than.”
“We discovered that the mastermind in this case is Khun Nan’s father, U Taw, who offered 20 million kyat (US$20,000) to the men to help his son escape.”
Pol-Supt Min Tin said six people have so far been arrested and face charges for ‘obstructing lawful apprehension of a suspect’, while U Taw and another man named Paw Lu, one of the four men involved in the break out, were still at large.
“The regional police force will step up security to prevent similar incidents in the future,” he added.
