Prisoner who clocked 140 km in high speed chase escapes at district court sitting
A Limerick man who was clocked driving at 140kmph in a high speed chase proved too quick for prison officers when he escaped custody and ran out of a courthouse along with another prisoner.
A manhunt was continuing last night for the 22-year-old who walked out the back door of Ennis courthouse at 3.15pm yesterday.
The man fled after another 18-year-old prisoner walked out the back door and ran for the gate moments earlier.
However, the teen’s spell of freedom didn’t last long and he was picked up by gardai two miles away in the village of Clarecastle, Co Clare.
He has since been returned to Limerick prison.
On hearing of the prisoners’ escape, Judge Patrick Durcan adjourned the remaining custodial cases to next Wednesday “because of the emergency situation downstairs”.
The prisoners were
two of 12 remanded in custody to appear before the court yesterday and both had their cases dealt with and were being
returned to the court cells when they made their escape.
footage
After the escape, prisoner officers studied CCTV footage of the two men escaping.
A spokesman for the Irish Prison Service
confirmed that two
prisoners had escaped from the custody of prison officers while on escorts to Ennis District Court.
The 22-year-old remained at large last night.