It was in his second attempt, 18-year-old Javed, alias Rinku, managed to escape from Tihar Jail on Saturday. Sources in the jail told The Pioneer that in April, he had tried to escape from jail by scaling but he was caught by the security staff before he could scale another one. An enquiry was going on into the case.

Javed, a resident of Deoli in South Delhi, is facing charges under the Sections 380 (theft) and 25 Arms Act at Neb Sarai Police station. According to police, Javed is a drug addict. He also tried to get away from the police custody when he was nabbed in March this year. later, he tried to escape from Tihar after scaling the three-tier security of the prison manned by Tihar Jail Special Police (TJS) as inner ring, while Tamil Nadu Special Police (TNSP) and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) in two outer rings.

Javed was arrested in March in a theft case and lodged in the same prison. On April 4, he managed to scale the wall of jail number 7 but could not cross the boundary wall of jail number 8. He got bail in April 13.

Director General (Prisons) Alok Verma had also ordered an enquiry into the incident.  “This time he took the help of Faizan, another drug addict, who was brought here just four days ago. Javed had been lodged in the jail since June 2 and was trying to lure other drug addicts to help him in escaping. He knew the way to escape as he had tried earlier,” said an officer.

Sources said Javed started committing small thefts when he was barely 16-year-old. He was also kept in juvenile correctional home for several months after being apprehended by local police. After coming out of the juvenile home, he started committing crimes. He also worked as a part-time painter in the area, they added.

Tihar Jail, Asia’s largest prison, has more than 12,000 prisoners in nine separate complexes. Apart from several politicians and businessmen, hardcore gangsters as well as terrorists are also lodged in the prison.