JELEBU: One of the six prisoners on the run after escaping from the Jelebu prison here on Sunday (April 10) was arrested in Kampung Petasih Tengah, Pertang, near here early on Monday (April 11).

       Jelebu OCPD Deputy Supt Maslan Udin said the detainee, Mohd Zairizan Zainal, 42, who is awaiting trial for murder, was arrested at about 5.15am.

       "The man had broken into a village home and attempted to steal a Proton Waja car, but was intercepted before being caught by villagers and the police.

       "This takes the number of arrests to two out of the seven who escaped from the prison yesterday,” he told a media conference at the district police headquarters here on Monday.

       The first escapee caught was Sohaimi Khalid, in his 50s, who was rearrested at about 7pm on Sunday at an oil palm smallholding in Kangkoi some two kilometres from here.

       He said police obtained a remand order on Sohaimi on Monday and would work on getting one for Mohd Zairizan on Tuesday (April 12) at the Jelebu court.

       He said police investigations found that the 6am prison break happened at the facility’s Muhasabah 2 block where the seven are believed to have escaped through a hole in the ceiling, and later through another hole in the fence, which was suspected to have been cut using a wire cutter.

       Following that, the police set up four roadblocks at the Jelebu border, namely Nilai, Kuala Pilah and Jempol in an effort to track down all those who escaped, including with the help of the Tracker Dog Unit (K9) of the Negri Sembilan police contingent headquarters and Jelebu Prison.

       Meanwhile, he said the five remaining escapees, all of whom are awaiting trial for charges under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, are believed to have changed clothes after escaping, adding that they could be hiding in village fringes.

       Police are focusing their search on areas around Pertang.

       The five still on the run are Muhammad Syafiq Rohmat, 32; Shazuan Md Sharif, 32; Mazlan Samah, 39; Mohamad Aminuddin Khan Mohd Yusof, 28; and an Indonesian, only known as Zainuddin, 62.

       Maslan urged those with any information on the matter to contact the nearest police station, the Jelebu IPD at 06-6136222 or investigation officer Inspector Zuria Anis Mahassan at 016-6096996.- Bernama