Third incident: 7 inmates flee Vellore juvenile home; 2 nabbed

VELLORE: In the third such instance in a month, seven inmates escaped from the Vellore government place of safety (juvenile home) late on Thursday night.

The inmates reportedly broke the window of the toilet to reach the compound and then scaled the barbed wire fitted wall by using blankets tied together. When officials became aware of the escape, they informed Vellore north police who rushed to the spot and secured two of them near Perumugai on Vellore – Chennai national highway. Collector P Kumaravel Pandian visited the spot and held an inquiry.

It may be recalled that some juveniles clambered to the top of the buildings and raised demands on March 27 from the same facility. Six inmates escaped from there on the same day. While one escapee surrendered in the Salem court, another 4 were apprehended.

Search for the remaining escapee is continuing.

In the second instance, five, who escaped from the home on the night of April 13, were apprehended immediately. Following this, social welfare minister Geetha Jeevan and national child protection commission member SR Anand visited the facility and lauded officials for their prompt action.

Sources say that the reason for this repeated attempts may be inmates, who became adults during the stay in the correction facility, knowing that they could taunt officials with impunity.

“Tougher measures are needed to handle such offenders. Raising the compound wall after the first escape and fitting barbed wire, posed no difficulty for the escapees,” the sources said.

He added that attitudes have to change and recalled that in the aftermath of the first attempt, a judicial officer pulled up a police official for entering the premises. “It is such acts, which emboldens juveniles as they realise that officials cannot touch them no matter what they do.”