A prisoner who the Eastern Cape department of correctional services said “escaped” in fact walked out of the detention centre through the main entrance wearing his civilian clothes.
On being re-arrested at his sister’s house in NU1 on Friday, the prisoner told police he had decided to leave the Middledrift prison as he had served his sentence and prison guards kept him in custody against his will.
Correctional services spokesman Zama Feni yesterday confirmed 44-year-old Mzwandile Pukwana was supposed to have been released “a long time ago” but was kept in prison when the fixed physical address to which he was supposed to be released did not check out.
He had two months to go until his “unconditional” release.
Pukwana on Thursday removed his orange prison uniform and replaced it with his navy overall, headed for the prison main gates, and walked out of the facility without anyone stopping him.
Once on the R63 between Alice and King William’s Town, he thumbed lifts to his Mdantsane NU1 family home.
This was the same address he had given correctional services authorities when he was cleared for parole and it was where members of the Mdantsane crime prevention unit found him on Friday afternoon before re-arresting him.
Initially Pukwana was sentenced in September 2010 to seven years in prison for house breaking and theft.
In 2012 President Jacob Zuma granted qualifying prisoners a one year and six months remission of sentence, making Pukwana eligible for parole in 2014.
“The offender was supposed to have been granted parole a long time ago, but there was a problem with his family support system as the person whose address he confirmed did not want him to return to her house,” Feni said.
He said part of the conditions for placement on parole was that the offender must have a fixed physical address where he could be monitored by the department officials from time to time.
Pukwana now faces an even longer wait before he can go home as Feni said: “He has been charged with escaping from lawful custody. There is no offender who is allowed to leave premises without a written authority.”
Shortly after his escape last week the department said Pukwana had fled with just seven months to go to his release.
However, the department yesterday said it had made an error and that he had been due for unconditional release in May. — zwangam@dispatch.co.za
Escaped prisoner’s short walk to freedom
On being re-arrested at his sister’s house in NU1 on Friday, the prisoner told police he had decided to leave the Middledrift prison as he had served his sentence and prison guards kept him in custody against his will.
Correctional services spokesman Zama Feni yesterday confirmed 44-year-old Mzwandile Pukwana was supposed to have been released “a long time ago” but was kept in prison when the fixed physical address to which he was supposed to be released did not check out.
He had two months to go until his “unconditional” release.
Pukwana on Thursday removed his orange prison uniform and replaced it with his navy overall, headed for the prison main gates, and walked out of the facility without anyone stopping him.
Once on the R63 between Alice and King William’s Town, he thumbed lifts to his Mdantsane NU1 family home.
This was the same address he had given correctional services authorities when he was cleared for parole and it was where members of the Mdantsane crime prevention unit found him on Friday afternoon before re-arresting him.
Initially Pukwana was sentenced in September 2010 to seven years in prison for house breaking and theft.
In 2012 President Jacob Zuma granted qualifying prisoners a one year and six months remission of sentence, making Pukwana eligible for parole in 2014.
“The offender was supposed to have been granted parole a long time ago, but there was a problem with his family support system as the person whose address he confirmed did not want him to return to her house,” Feni said.
He said part of the conditions for placement on parole was that the offender must have a fixed physical address where he could be monitored by the department officials from time to time.
Pukwana now faces an even longer wait before he can go home as Feni said: “He has been charged with escaping from lawful custody. There is no offender who is allowed to leave premises without a written authority.”
Shortly after his escape last week the department said Pukwana had fled with just seven months to go to his release.
However, the department yesterday said it had made an error and that he had been due for unconditional release in May. — zwangam@dispatch.co.za
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