8 juveniles flee observation home in Chhattisgarh's Mahasamund
Eight juveniles escaped from a government-run observation home in Chhattisgarh's Mahasamund district in the early hours of Monday, July 3, prompting a police search operation, officials said as reported by PTI.
The minors, aged between 14 and 17 years, fled from the observation home under the City Kotwali police station limits in the wee hours of the day, they said.
A Bilaspur police patrol had visited the premises between 2 am and 2.30 am, and everything was found to be normal. The inmates are believed to have escaped after 3 am, said Aparna Srivastava, the superintendent of the facility.
She said that the eight escapees hail from different parts of the state and neighbouring Odisha, including two each from Saraipali in Mahasamund district and Kalahandi in neighbouring Odisha, one each from Mahasamund town, Fingeshwar in Gariaband district, Balodabazar-Bhatapara district and Kurud in Dhamtari district.
Three of the minors were accused of Excise Act cases, two were involved in thefts, and one each in rape and drug cases, the official stated.
Superintendent Srivastava said that at the time of the incident, 27 juveniles were lodged in the observation home. Meanwhile, two staff members, a watchman and a house father (caregiver and supervisor) were on night duty.
It seems the boys escaped by pulling and stretching the window bars, she added.
Police teams have launched a search operation and raided possible hideouts to trace the absconding juveniles, a police official said.
The incident comes weeks after four inmates of a government-run 'place of safety' allegedly strangled a 40-year-old watchman before escaping from the facility in Bilaspur district on July 13.
A 'place of safety' is a secure residential facility under the Juvenile Justice Act for offenders who were minors at the time of the offence but continue to remain in custody after turning 18.
Earlier, on June 23, eleven juveniles had escaped from a government observation home in Surguja district, taking advantage of heavy rain and a power outage.
