JOHANNESBURG - Rooigrond Maximum Security Correctional Centre’s infrastructure, rather than staff inefficiencies, may have contributed to an inmate’s escape.
This is according to the Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (POPCRU).
The union’s comments come after the Department of Correctional Services (DCS) served eight officials at the facility near Mahikeng with notices of contemplation of suspension following the escape of an inmate.
Edward Khomotso Madiba escaped from the facility on 6 September.
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He is serving a 20-year sentence for robbery, possession of a firearm and ammunition, kidnapping and parole violations.
According to DCS, Madiba was being held in the single cells on a further charge relating to a previous escape when he managed to break out of the correctional centre.
DCS spokesperson Singabakho Nxumalo says preliminary information indicates that Madiba cut through the burglar-bar door of the single cells.
Nxumalo says security measures have been activated and officials are working with other law enforcement agencies to locate and apprehend Madiba.
“All necessary measures are being implemented to ensure that Madiba is traced and brought back to custody,” says Nxumalo.
But POPCRU North West secretary Johannesburg Dire says the facility has been in a poor state for a long time, making it easier for inmates to escape.
He says previous escapes have also been investigated, with findings indicating that some were linked to infrastructure problems rather than human error.
“There is a possibility that he could have escaped from the dilapidated parts of the facility,” says Dire.
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Dire says that while an inmate may be able to escape from a cell, they would still have to pass through an entrance where an official should prevent them from going further.
If an inmate manages to leave the building, they should then be visible to officers stationed in watchtowers around the facility.
However, Dire claims some of the watchtowers are currently unmanned because of infrastructure problems.
He says an inmate would then have to breach the facility’s perimeter fencing, which is supposed to prevent them from leaving the premises.
Dire says all investigations should be completed before DCS reaches conclusions about the circumstances surrounding the escape.