Two murder suspects recaptured

Fadli, Batam, Riau Islands

Two of nine escaped prisoners were recaptured on Saturday after fleeing from a detention center at the Batam District Court on Thursday. One of them was shot in the leg, while the other surrendered to the local prosecutor's office.

Comr. Susanto, the chief of Barelang police subprecinct, said that his men shot Budi in the leg, after he attempted to flee from the officers. Susanto explained that the policemen spotted him on Friday night trying to board a boat at Beton port in the Sekupang area on Batam, and ordered him to surrender. But the 24- year-old inmate was having none of it and sprinted away, prompting the police to open fire, according to Susanto.

On Saturday morning, Budi's cohort Hardiansyah bin Saiful, 23, surrendered to officials at the Batam prosecutor's office at 9 a.m. "For those who surrender, there will be a lighter sentence. But, otherwise, the maximum sentence will be demanded for those who refuse to surrender," said Susanto, adding that the police were hunting down the remaining seven suspects.

The nine men, seven of whom have been charged with murder, escaped from a detention cell at the Batam District Court in the midst of a trial session on Thursday.

They apparently cut through the bars on the bathroom window by using a hacksaw blade allegedly given to them by somebody visiting the courthouse.

They also took advantage of the fact that the two police officers supposed to be guarding them were nowhere in sight.

"We are still trying to find out who gave them the hacksaw," said Susanto.

The worst prison escape in the country happened at the Batam penitentiary in September last year when 52 inmates escaped by cutting the metal bars of their cells. They are all still at large.