A runaway inmate was in a stable condition after cutting his throat as police attempted to arrest him in Zhongli District of Taoyuan earlier Sunday, less than 24 hours after escaping from a Taichung hospital on Saturday afternoon, police said.
Forty-five-year-old prisoner Chen Kun-he (陳坤和) was in a taxi that police officers pulled over as it passed Zhongshan East Road at 1:45 p.m. Sunday, according to a police statement.
Chen got out of the taxi, and seeing he was surrounded, he cut his throat with a small knife before he could be disarmed. He was immediately taken to a nearby hospital where he received emergency medical treatment.
Chen is currently hospitalized with non-life threatening injuries. He will be escorted back to Taichung where an investigation will be conducted into the escape once the Taoyuan hospital clears him for release, according to police.
According to Taichung Prison’s Deputy Warden Yang Hu-cheng (楊戶政), Chen was escorted by two prison guards to Taichung-based China Medical University Hospital on Friday in preparation for surgery to remove an intramedullary nail from his left foot the next day.
The surgery was completed successfully at around noon Saturday and Chen was placed in a special ward within the hospital for Taichung Prison inmates requiring medical attention. Prisoners on this ward remain in leg shackles.
However, when one of the two prison guards checked on the ward at 5:44 p.m., Chen was no longer there, according to Yang.
Initial investigations show that Chen removed his shackles with a piece of metal wire at around 5:24 p.m. before escaping the hospital. The wire was left in the ward and two other prisoners in the ward witnessed Chen’s escape, Yang said.
After fleeing, Chen stole a mini-van from a nearby Taichung funeral parlor parking lot before driving north, according to Taichung police.
An arrest warrant was issued Saturday night in the wake of police launching a manhunt for Chen.
Yang said an ongoing probe will seek to determine whether negligence enabled the prisoner to escape. Meanwhile, the prison has increased staffing at the hospital’s special ward for prisoners.
Chen was previously found guilty on charges related to the possession of firearms and illegal drugs. He began serving a 16-year sentence on March 22 last year.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel