2020 Belize prison escape

2020 Belize prison escape
	Central Prison front gate
Date	12 October 2020
Time	ca 6:00 pm local time
Location	Central Prison, Hattieville, Belize
Type	Prison escape
Perpetrator	28 inmates
Outcome	27 escapees reapprehended; 1 escapee killed
Deaths	1 (escapee)
Non-fatal injuries	Not reported

On 12 October 2020, 28 inmates from Central Prison in Hattieville, Belize, escaped solitary confinement by running to and breaching the prison fence with three guards as hostages or human shields. An over three-month manhunt for the escapees resulted in the reapprehension of 27, with one fatally shot during their attempted capture. The prison break is deemed the largest such in the country's history.

Background

Central Prison managed to keep free of COVID-19 until 28 September, when it was first detected in a guard from Orange Walk.^[1] Contact tracing revealed 'several' other positive cases though, leading to a 'massive outbreak' in the prison, with 90 inmates testing positive on 28 October.^[2] In anticipation of said outbreak, the prison was reportedly set to go on a 21-day COVID-19 lockdown on 13 October.^[3]

Escape

On 12 October, at approximately 1:00 pm local time, a group of some five inmates in the solitary confinement section of Central Prison surreptitiously snuck up on and physically overpowered three guards in the nearest watchtower.^[4] The inmates commandeered an M4 carbine rifle and held the guards hostage for some five hours (as they waited for sunset to make their escape), all without attracting the attention of other prison guards nor administrators.^[5] At approximately 6:00 pm local time, the hostage takers (with their hostages) made for the nearest perimeter fence, this time garnering the attention of nearby guards and inmates.^[6] A guard was forced to advise other towers over radio 'not to shoot as they were being held hostage.'^[6] Despite this, the group came under fire from the Alpha 2 Tower, but this was to no avail as all hostage takers, and an additional number of inmates in the solitary confinement section, managed to breach the prison perimeter past the towers' shooting ranges, resulting in 28 escapees.^[6]

Aftermath

Police and prison guards began a manhunt for the escapees within minutes of their escape, with the police commissioner advising the public 'to be extremely vigilant and careful when using the highways' as escaped inmates were 'armed and dangerous.'^[7] On 13 October, names and mugshots of all escapees were released, with an appeal for the public's help.^{[n 1]} That same day, armed police officers and soldiers engaged an escapee (Akeem Tillett, armed with the stolen rifle) in a shootout on Coastal Road, Belize, resulting in the latter's death.^[8] By 3 November, all but five (of 27 escapees still alive) had been reapprehended.^[9] By 31 January 2021, the last escapees still at large were taken into custody in Ladyville, Belize.^[10]

On 13 October, a group of some 15 to 25 inmates who had witnessed the prison break incited a riot during their morning recreation at circa 9:00 am local time near the Tango 7 Tower, purportedly to take advantage of increased media attention.^[11] The riot reportedly required physical force to be quelled, resulting in 'several' inmates being injured, and one fatally shot (Stephan Jenkins).^{[n 2]}

Investigations into the escape were separately conducted by the Police Department and Kolbe Foundation, with neither finding conclusive evidence of collusion between inmates and guards.^[12] Kolbe nonetheless found that officers in the solitary confinement section had acted negligently in placing the hostage takers in working positions (with some freedom of movement), despite their being in said section for prison rules violations or for being escape risks, and further found that the hostage takers acted out of fear of the 21-day COVID-19 lockdown scheduled for 13 October.^{[n 3]} The negligent officers were disciplined, and the prison 'ramped up security to prevent something of this magnitude from happening again,' including by building an additional watchtower for the solitary confinement section (inaugurated 26 March 2021).^[13]

The mass escape has been deemed the largest such in the country's history.^{[n 4]}

Notes and references

Notes

^ Murillo a, p. 1.
^ Murillo a, pp. 1–2.
^ Loop a, para 5; Amandala a, para 8.
^ Murillo a, pp. 4, 7; Loop a, para 6-8.
^ Murillo a, pp. 4, 7.
^ ^a ^b ^c Murillo a, p. 4.
^ BBN a, paras 1-3; BBN b, paras 1-4.
^ Murillo a, p. 4; Amandala a, para 6.
^ Amandala b, para 2.
^ Murillo a, pp. 4, 7; Amandala d, paras 1-2, 5.
^ Murillo a, p. 4; Murillo b, p. 1.
^ Amandala b, paras 3-6.
^ Murillo a, pp. 7, 29; Murillo b, pp. 2, 8, 30, 33; 7 News a, para 2; Amandala c, paras 1-3; Amandala e, paras 2-6; Amandala f, paras 7-8.

^ Loop a, paras 1-2. Including two Guatemalan nationals, and at least 13 men charged or convicted of murder (Loop a, paras 3-4). The escapees were identified as Elroy Henry, Luis Paiz, Luke Bowen, Rudy Herrera, Mark Pelayo, Juan Ramirez, Akeem Tillett, Kevin Buller, Carlos Montejo, Deandre Guiffarro, Darren Vasquez, Christopher Bradley, Elser Oseguera, Enrique Martinez, Erwin Lanza, Eutychus Nunez, George Bednrick, Joel Sierra, Kendale Flores, Kenroy Gamboa, Micheal Faux, Orlando Smith, Oswaldo Perez, Phillip Bowen, Santos Lopez, Victor Galeano and White Deon (Loop a, paras 1-2). The Amandala identified Joel Sierra, Carlos Montejo, and Elser Oseguera as among the hostage takers (and escape masterminds) (Amandala a, paras 2-3). The Central Prison warden named Carlos Montejo and Jose Guerra as the hostage-and-escape orchestrators, with Joel Sierra an enlisted accomplice (BBN c, paras 1-2).
^ Murillo a, pp. 4–5; Murillo b, p. 1; Amandala e, para 1. At least one guard was gravely injured, and one sexually assaulted under threat of being gang raped, during the riot (Murillo a, pp. 4–5, Murillo b, p. 1).
^ Murillo a, p. 7; Murillo b, p. 1. COVID-19 lockdowns are thought to have disrupted inmates' access to cannabis and supplementary food routinely brought (or smuggled) in by visitors (Amandala e, paras 9-12, Amandala f, paras 4-6, 13-16). Prison-provided food rations, in particular, have been described as 'insufficient for a grown man' and 'inhumane' (Amandala f, paras 5, 13-15).
^ Amandala a, paras 1, 5; Amandala b, para 11; 7 News a, para 1; Amandala e, para 1. And the first mass escape since Kolbe took over Central Prison (Murillo b, p. 1).