23 of 61 escapees rearrested

THE number of escapees who have been rearrested after a mass escape from the Wanaheda Police Station cells on Friday evening was pushed up to 23 yesterday.

With the 23 back in Police custody, 38 of their former fellow trial-awaiting detainees remained on the run yesterday afternoon. Chief Inspector Hermie van Zyl, who is one of the senior officers involved in the hunt for the escapees, said other suspected escapees were arrested elsewhere in Namibia, such as at Oshivelo, where people have been arrested while in possession of illegal firearms.He said their identities would first have to be confirmed before the Police would be able to say whether they were among the 61 that escaped from the Wanaheda Police Station at about 23h00 on Friday.The mass jailbreak took place when a Police officer, who was taking two people to the station’s holding cells to be locked up, was attacked and overpowered.With some of the cell doors in such a state of disrepair that they could no longer be locked, some of the about 300 people detained at the Police station were free to make a dash for the door that the officer had entered through, and to unlock it with keys that they had taken off the officer.The names of escapees still on the run according to the Police are:Joseph Rooinasie Hendrick van Wyk Ikwa Samuel Simon Ipinge Iyambo Josef Immanuel Lukas Kavita Ruben Iyambo Eliakim Hamukoto Sarel van Schalkwyk David Kamati Simon Swartbooi Given Angula Mervin Frey David Kinda Joel Kheimseb Ismael Adams Johannes Angula Christoph Tsarab Ricardo Vlermuis Peneas Waterboer Sox Nawaseb Bucky Olyn van Wyk Sagious Lamberth Ileni Immanuel Frans Berendt Leonard Abraham Linus Kuduva Dansen Kambetu Patrick Andima Teofilus Hosea Matheus Simon Chaklas Lipunda Evath Ndakolo Moses David Samuel Gaseb Paulus Matheus Joseph SalomonChief Inspector Hermie van Zyl, who is one of the senior officers involved in the hunt for the escapees, said other suspected escapees were arrested elsewhere in Namibia, such as at Oshivelo, where people have been arrested while in possession of illegal firearms.He said their identities would first have to be confirmed before the Police would be able to say whether they were among the 61 that escaped from the Wanaheda Police Station at about 23h00 on Friday.The mass jailbreak took place when a Police officer, who was taking two people to the station’s holding cells to be locked up, was attacked and overpowered.With some of the cell doors in such a state of disrepair that they could no longer be locked, some of the about 300 people detained at the Police station were free to make a dash for the door that the officer had entered through, and to unlock it with keys that they had taken off the officer.The names of escapees still on the run according to the Police are: Joseph Rooinasie Hendrick van Wyk Ikwa Samuel Simon Ipinge Iyambo Josef Immanuel Lukas Kavita Ruben Iyambo Eliakim Hamukoto Sarel van Schalkwyk David Kamati Simon Swartbooi Given Angula Mervin Frey David Kinda Joel Kheimseb Ismael Adams Johannes Angula Christoph Tsarab Ricardo Vlermuis Peneas Waterboer Sox Nawaseb Bucky Olyn van Wyk Sagious Lamberth Ileni Immanuel Frans Berendt Leonard Abraham Linus Kuduva Dansen Kambetu Patrick Andima Teofilus Hosea Matheus Simon Chaklas Lipunda Evath Ndakolo Moses David Samuel Gaseb Paulus Matheus Joseph Salomon