Prisoner Digs In But Not Out
Illawarra Mercury
Monday June 21, 2004
AN inmate at a prison in central Portugal mistakenly dug a tunnel to an inner courtyard in a botched escape attempt, officials said.
The 2m tunnel was found beneath a cell at a jail in Coimbra, 200km north-east of Lisbon, a prison spokesman told daily newspaper Correio da Manha.
``There was still 21m to go until it reached the outdoors, but the tunnel was headed to the patio and not outside of the prison," Paulo Barbosa said, adding the prisoner had made ``a mistake in his calculations".
The inmate, 28, one of about 240 at the prison, had made another failed attempt shortly after being jailed in 1996 for robbery. He is serving a 17-year term.
© 2004 Illawarra Mercury