Four prisoners bust out of Hattieville

There seems to be no shortage of stories coming from behind the walls of the Hattieville Correctional Facility and today is no exception. It seems a well-planned, early morning escape earned four prisoners their freedom and has left one prison guard under suspicion.

Jacqueline Woods, Reporting

Four prisoners are still on the run after they broke out of the Hattieville Correctional facility early Friday morning. The inmates have been identified as 28-year old Michael Woods, 23-year old Wesley Emmanuel, 21-year old Samuel Reyes and 19-year old Frank Castro. The young men were in minimum security at the Tango One building when they made good their escape.

Bernard Adolphus, Governor of Prison

“The men went through the top of the building, the Tango One building which has some minor security bars which is held and which is covered by prospects, so that sunlight can come in. They damage the prospects and cut the security bars and scaled down the roof and went north over the fence and the KBH opened fire and it was later that we discovered that they went in the direction north but turned west. I cannot say if the party has been split up.”

A search party has been launched and several roadblocks have been set up but so far there have been no reported sightings of the convicts. But how did the men manage to escape? Governor of Prisons Bernard Adolphus says his officers were negligent.

Bernard Adolphus

“I must make everyone aware of what is happening. The relief shift that was on yesterday?the officer in charge of that building, despite the fact that we told them, nobody is to be out after 5:00. Before we left yesterday, the chief officers ensured that there was no one on the ground. Their relief shift officer was responsible for the building up to 7:00 pm last night. We had men from Tango building out and on the roof. We had a duty officer here who in my views should have controlled and stopped that nonsense because I, from my investigation have concluded that the bars were cut between 7:00 to 7:30 when there men were placed back in the building. And they quieted themselves, waited till the wee hours and you know what took place and eventually made good their escape. Somebody will have to stand the consequences and like the old saying says, heads will definitely roll for this nonsense that took place.”

That officer, who has not been identified, has been working at the institution for only 5 months. Adolphus says the officer has been suspended from duty pending the outcome of their investigation. Adolphus says except for Castro, none of the men are considered dangerous. Michael Woods was serving 5 years for burglary while Wesley Emmanuel was had only been serving 5 months for the charge of burglary. Samuel Reyes was incarcerated for 5 years on 2 charges of handling stolen goods and Frank Castro who has been imprisoned since 1992 has been serving a 19-year sentence for several crimes including burglary and attempted robbery.

Jacqueline Woods

“Let’s look at one of the inmates who escaped and that is Frank Castro. It is not the first time that he has broken out of the institution. Why was this individual placed in minimum security knowing that he has this habit of running away?”

Bernard Adolphus

“Well when I left this department I understand his behaviour has improved. He was given a number of tasks to do at the max and he did them well. He is suffering from a large cut wound and he complains about medical, he complains about work, and the fact that he was confined in an area where more one person was. So we decided, it was decided to put him in building to see what will happen. And subsequently, was a calculated risk, we put him in that building and the reason why he was placed in that building is that he has a few more years to go. A few more, between 2 and 3 I thinks it’s going in 2002, 2003 or 2005. Nonetheless because he has improved to an extent, he was placed their under observation. But the point is this, irrespective of that he should have been properly supervised. The officer should not have been neglectful.”

Although News Five was told that the institution has already repaired the damage to the building, when we visited the scene of the crime, the burglar bar had not yet been welded. However we were assured that the matter would be dealt with immediately. Meanwhile, if you know the whereabouts of Frank Castro, Michael Woods, Wesley Emmanuel and Samuel Reyes, you are asked to call the nearest police station.

This is the 9th time Frank Castro has managed to escape the confines of Hattieville. News Five understands that the Department of Corrections has been experiencing problems with their younger guards who associate closely with many of the inmates. There are 119 inmates in the Tango One building at the prison.