The recent jailbreak at Windhoek Central Prison is one too many. The daring escape exposes the lack of security at the country’s biggest prison facility but also incompetence on the part of those responsible for the custody of prisoners.
The fact that the jailbreak took place at Windhoek Central, a maximum security prison, is a serious indictment of the capacity and management of this prison facility as well as its leadership.
What compounds the matter is that those who escaped from the Windhoek Central Prison are dangerous criminal suspects who could have risked the safety of citizens had they not been re-arrested on time. Worse still, a lot of money and time was wasted on the hunt for people that should not have escaped in the first place.
The escape is also incomprehensible, coming as it does after the Minister of Safety and Security, Tshirumbu Tsheehama, not so long ago displayed weapons seized from inmates and promised tight security. One wonders what has happened to the Minister’s promise.
The escapees we are told used a saw to gain their short-lived freedom. The escapees could only have got the saw from collaborators outside. The saw could have passed hands when the suspects were taken out for some business, possibly during one of their court appearances.
And there begins the trail of security lapses. The people with the saw must have plotted the escape with the inmates before hand. The saw must have been presented at the agreed place and time. Now, where were the duty prison guards or police officials when this was happening? Why didn’t they spot the saw?
But the biggest puzzle is that the saw found its way into the cells. We understand that when inmates return to their cells, they have to undergo certain security checks including the guards in charge of them. It is baffling therefore that such procedures failed to detect the saw.
Again what followed is a systematic failure of security at this prison facility.
The inmates cut through burglar bars and went up the roof before dashing for the next layer of security. Once out of the cells, they got through every security point including barbed wires and the electric fence and off they went.
We are told that sawing the burglar bars took about a week and if this is true, regular checks or inspections could have exposed the plot on time. And what about the alarm system that is connected to the Windhoek Police Station? Did it go off and if not why?
The Windhoek Central Prison authorities have said nothing about human security and one wonders whether there are armed guards patrolling this facility at night. If not, this is again a sign of poor security.
Would it surprise anyone therefore if next time around, there is an armed raid on this prison or another prison facility in the country. Would it also surprise anyone if next time, dangerous criminals such as these robbers laid their hands on AK-47 rifles instead of saws and use them to get away! The ensuing bloodbath would be unimaginable but with this type of security at our maximum prison, the above scenarios are possible.
When one of the Zimbabwean bank robbery suspects, Itai Mashamba mysteriously vanished, we speculated that these suspects could be having a cell operating in Namibia.
We said then and we say now that it appears there is a network of collaborators operating in the country. This network, not only facilitated Mashamba’s escape but also the bank robberies that preceded the arrests of these Zimbabwean nationals.
Preliminary information gleaned so far indicates that during the latest jailbreak, the six escapees were ferried by a car up to Grootfontein, alternatively Tsumeb, where they acquired a cellphone. While there, they made contact with someone for transport further north. This car must have taken them to Divundu. Between the cars that transported these fugitives and the escapees, there was an exchange of money.
The question is how did the escapees get the money.
Before the Divundu roadblock, the six disembarked and headed down to the river. There they found canoes docked on the riverbanks and used them to cross the river. Their car in the meantime passed through the roadblock to wait for them on the other side.
It would appear only Morris Mazila Sibitwani knew how to paddle a canoe. The Zimbabweans who had just been given verbal instructions about paddling a canoe tried to go across but were hit by a wave that overturned their canoe. It would appear it is here that Plan Ndebele disappeared into the water while his companions were rescued by Sibitwani who came back and found them clutching onto some reeds. It has been confirmed that Ndebele indeed drowned in a bid to evade arrest.
The group then aborted a second journey across the river and instead gathered their courage and walked up to the Divundu roadblock. With luck on their side they crossed on foot without a hitch and joined their waiting car and off they drove. The rest is now history.
Clearly, these men breached every security including circumventing roadblocks. They were assisted by other people to evade detection. The police must seriously work on identifying these collaborators and nab them because they are equally dangerous.