29 July 2023 , 00:17
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An inmate managed to swipe an officer's uniform from the prison gym and nearly made a successful getaway before being apprehended, according to officials and law enforcement sources.
The inmate was identified as Bokeem Jones, 28, who had been incarcerated on assault charges from Brooklyn, New York. The incident occurred at the 400-capacity Otis Bantum Correctional Center on Thursday night at around 10.15pm.
Jones donned the Department of Corrections uniform and attempted to walk out of the facility undetected. He knocked on a locked door, and an unsuspecting officer let him out, at which point he began strolling casually down a corridor, impersonating a guard.
An inmate nearly escaped from Rikers Island by swiping an officer’s uniform (TNS)However, the keen eyes of some observant staffers finally recognized that something was amiss and immediately ordered Jones to stop. Instead of complying, the suspect assumed a fighting stance and made a desperate attempt to flee from the officers.
In response, the guards deployed a chemical agent, believed to be pepper spray, to subdue him. The ensuing scuffle, captured on camera, resulted in three Department of Corrections staffers sustaining injuries during their efforts to restrain the would-be escapee.
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The details of how Jones managed to gain access to the gym and obtain the uniform have not been immediately disclosed.
A spokesperson for the Department of Corrections issued a statement regarding the incident, stating: "Last night at approximately 10.30pm, a person in custody tried to escape from the Otis Bantum Correctional Center by disguising himself in a DOC uniform and attempting to leave a secure area. Officers identified the detainee in a hallway and quickly took him into custody. The incident is under investigation."
The authorities are likely to conduct a thorough investigation into this latest incident to identify any potential lapses in security and prevent similar occurrences in the future.
In September, another inmate managed to escape from a jail barge on Rikers Island and jumped into the East River before being rescued in an unresponsive state. Additionally, federal authorities had recently expressed alarm over an unusually high number of in-custody deaths.