Fugitive wanted over deadly prison escape caught on tropical island
Thai police have arrested a French fugitive on the tropical holiday island of Phuket over a deadly prison breakout that freed a notorious drug lord nicknamed "The Fly."
Adonis Correa, 24, is the latest of two dozen suspects to be detained in a sprawling international manhunt after the shocking escape of suspected gangland kingpin Mohamed Amra from a prison van in northern France in May 2024.
Correa is considered by investigators to be a "close friend" of Amra, who was arrested in Romania last month after nine months on the run as France's "public enemy number one."
Correa was arrested on Wednesday in the southern island of Phuket, a hugely popular beach destination for millions of tourists, French sources and Thai police said on Thursday.
"Thai immigration police have arrested a French national linked to a transnational criminal organization involved in a violent prison break that resulted in the deaths of prison officers," Thai police said in a statement.
The shocking, violent nature of Amra's escape last year stunned France and made headlines around the world.
Masked gunmen armed with military-grade automatic weapons attacked a prison van transporting him at a motorway toll plaza, killing two guards and wounding three others. Interpol had issued a red notice at the request of France for the arrest of Amra.
Amra, who is suspected of pursuing his drug-related activities and even ordering murders from his prison cell, went on the run and was eventually tracked down in Bucharest and sent back to France.
Prosecutors at the time said Amra, who had changed his appearance and dyed his hair, had been identified through facial recognition tools and his fingerprints.
At least 2 dozen suspects detained
Correa is the latest of two dozen suspects detained as part of the French probe into the breakout.
He entered Thailand on a tourist visa February 8 through Phuket International Airport -- before an arrest warrant and Interpol red notice were issued against him, according to Thai police.
Thai authorities said they tracked Correa to the Kamala and Patong areas of Phuket and arrested him on Wednesday.
His lawyer in France, Joseph Hazan, told AFP on Thursday that his client had turned himself in.
"He presented himself to Thai authorities, with whom we have been in contact for several days," Hazan said, adding that his client had not yet made a statement and would "explain himself to the French judges".
Thai officials have cancelled Correa's visa and he is now being held in Bangkok while his deportation to France is arranged.
Thailand and France do not have an extradition treaty but sources told AFP they expect Correa to be sent back some time next week.
"The Fly" has history of violent crime, officials say
Amra has a long history of convictions for violent crimes that started when he was only 15, according to judicial sources.
"He is very well-known to the judiciary," Paris chief prosecutor Laure Beccuau said previously.
Amra has close links to organized crime, said another source close to the case who asked not to be identified, and is suspected of ordering killings linked to the drugs trade.
Another source who asked not to be named said Amra runs his own drug trafficking network.
However, none of his 13 prior convictions -- for crimes ranging from armed robbery to extortion -- were directly related to the narcotics business, said Beccuau.
He was jailed in January 2022 in Evreux prison in the northwestern Normandy region to serve several sentences, including for criminal conspiracy, extortion, robbery, armed violence and participation in an illegal motor rodeo.
At the time of his escape he was also facing two fresh charges, one for attempted murder and another for participation in a gangland killing in the southern city of Marseille on the French riviera, a hub for drug trafficking and gang violence.
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