Breakout duo recaptured

PHUKET CITY: Two detainees – a Filipino and a Liberian man – who broke out of the Phuket Immigration Office on June 10 while awaiting deportation, were both recaptured within days of their bid for freedom, much to the relief of the officer who was supposedly guarding them. The men – who had just completed sentences in Phuket Provincial Prison – were being held in a simple lock-up room at the Immigration Office and managed to remove the room’s air vent and climb out through the hole. Pol Col Witawat Buranasompop, Superintendent of the Phuket Immigration Office scotched reports that suggested the men had been armed and that more than 20 detainees had escaped. “It didn’t happen like that. They broke out through the air vent – the Immigration Office is not a jail so we don’t have cells here – and simply ran away,” he said. The Filipino had completed a six-week sentence for being in Thailand illegally, while the Liberian had served a 54-week sentence for fraud. The unnamed Immigration officer responsible for them no doubt expressed relief at their swift recapture. He or she would have faced strict disciplinary measures had the two not been back in custody within 30 days. “We have already taken steps to prevent this happening again,” said Col Witawat. “Detainees will now be observed by my officers at all times.”