Man caught after escaping French prison by sneaking into luggage trolley
A French prisoner has been caught after escaping from a high-security facility last week in a luggage trolley.
The man has been identified as Elyazid A, who French media have nicknamed ‘The Joker’ and ‘The Equaliser’ because of his escape. The 20-year-old successfully fled Lyon-Corbas prison on July 11th and enjoyed three days on the run before authorities managed to re-arrest him.
Elyazid’s escape plan didn’t have the Hollywood ending that he envisaged, nor did he travel very far. He was detained at 6am on July 14th after emerging from a cellar in a rural village, which was only around 15 miles from the Lyon-Corbas prison.
Following his escape on July 11th, the French prison service said in a statement to the AFP that Elyazid “took advantage of the liberation of his fellow inmate to hide himself in his luggage and get out”.
Additionally, a judicial investigation was launched, with officials fearing that the escape was “part of an organised gang and criminal conspiracy.” The French prison services have promised to “take all appropriate disciplinary measures” once the investigation reaches its conclusion.
Elyazid somehow managed to squeeze himself into a laundry bag, which a fellow cellmate wheeled out when he was released from prison on July 11th. Authorities are still hunting down the released prisoner.
According to Sébastien Cauwel, the national prison service chief, Elyazid was behind bars for a series of minor offences, but is also currently being investigated for alleged criminal association and conspiracy to murder. He was not deemed to be a security risk.
Speaking to broadcaster BFMTV, Cauwel said the situation is “extremely rare” and “the consequence of a series of dysfunctions – serious and inadmissible dysfunctions – inside this prison, which are now being fully investigated”.
While Elyazid is naturally at the centre of the story, it’s also opened up a broader conversation regarding the safety of prisoners in Lyon-Corbas amid overcrowding fears. Despite having a capacity of 678, it was home to 1,222 inmates on June 1st, and as a result of the facilities being stretched so wildly beyond their capabilities, instances like this have been able to occur.