Justice minister receives report on jailbreak to present at press conference later today
The possible dismissal of the Director General of Reintegration and Prison Services, Rui Abrunhosa Gonçalves, following the escape of five inmates from the so-called ‘high security’ prison of Vale de Judeus, Alcoentre, will be “a political decision”, an official source from the Ministry of Justice has said today.
According to the same source, Justice minister Rita Alarcão Júdice this morning received the audit report on the performance of the surveillance and security services – drawn up by the security division of the Directorate-General for Reintegration and Prison Services (DGRSP) – and is analysing the document, ahead of presenting it at a press conference later this afternoon.
The report, said the same source, was the result of an “urgent inquiry” and is a “technical audit”. It deals only with the facts surrounding the prison break and security, with details of the time of the events and what failed to make it possible for the five inmates to escape on Saturday morning.
The government official’s first statements on the case of the escape of the five inmates from Vale de Judeus, in Alcoentre, on Saturday, were announced for 5pm, but should actually start later, predictably at 5.30pm, so as not to overlap with speeches by the parties and the government on the State Budget, also scheduled for this afternoon.
Rita Alarcão Júdice will explain the document for 10 – 12 minutes, then present her own conclusions and decisions, with the continuity of the DGRSP director being one of the issues at stake.
There will then be a space for questions from journalists, which is scheduled to last 20 minutes.
The press conference will also be attended by the Assistant Secretary of State for Justice, Maria Clara Figueiredo, who is in charge of prisons, and the Inspector General for Justice Services, Gonçalo Cunha Pires.
In addition to the report, the same source pointed out that another internal investigation led by a magistrate from the Public Prosecutor’s Office, within the scope of the DGRSP’s Audit and Inspection Service, is underway and “will be ready within a month”.
Asked by Lusa if Rui Abrunhosa Gonçalves has made his position available to the Ministry of Justice, the DGRSP declined to comment and referred to today’s press conference.
As for the report and the information that has since been discovered about the escape and security breaches, the DGRSP merely states that this matter “is the subject of an internal investigation by the Audit and Inspection Services, coordinated by a Public Prosecutor, as well as by the competent Criminal Police Bodies”, stressing that, for the time being, “it cannot be shared publicly”.
The five escapees have not been apprehended. Indeed, security sources have stressed they may not be for some time.
The men were serving sentences, ranging from seven years to 25, for various crimes – including drug trafficking, criminal association, robbery, kidnapping and money laundering.
Meantime, it appears that a kind of ‘dug-out’ used by the men’s accomplices has been found in the scrubland outside the prison walls. Prison guard syndicate lawyer Pedro Proença said the hiding place has “military characteristics”, suggesting the accomplices may be ex-military.
Various items found ihave been taken for forensic testing (to see if they render usable DNA evidence).
A report by SIC Notícias today refers to “one of the largest manhunts in Portugal” being underway, albeit the frontiers are not under any apparent extra control.
Source material: LUSA
