Latest news with #ElyazidA
Daily Mirror
21-07-2025
- Daily Mirror
Prisoner escapes jail by hiding in cellmate's LUGGAGE as officers left baffled
A prisoner managed to make a mad-dash escape from a French prison, taking the opportunity of his cellmate's release to hide inside his fellow-prisoner's luggage A 20-year-old prisoner made a daring escape from jail after seizing an opportunity during his cellmate's release - and no-one even noticed he was gone until the following day. The prisoner - who was reportedly serving multiple sentences in France - climbed inside his cellmate's laundry bag, in what has been called an "extremely rare event" caused by a "accumulation of errors." Sébastien Cauwel, the director of France's prison administration, told AFP that the lag, who has been identified by local media as Elyazid A, "took advantage" of the moment of his cellmate's release on 11 July to stage his escape from Corbas prison, near Lyon. Inside Ronnie Biggs' prison escape more daring than audacious £2.4m robbery Three 'possibly dangerous' prisoners escape HMP Springhill as public warned "This is an extremely rare event that we have never seen in this administration and which clearly shows a whole series of serious failures," the official said. According to the BBC, the escapee was under investigation in a case linked to organised crime, and there is even the possibility that his getaway itself was "part of an organised gang and criminal conspiracy". Remarkably, after Elyazid climbed inside the large canvas bags used by prisoners upon their release, and his cellmate rolled the luggage out of the prison. There were no checks by staff, and the incident occurred entirely unnoticed. The bag was so large and heavy that the cellmate to who it belonged requested a trolley to use as he left the prison, with guards even reportedly helping him get the duffle bag onto it before sending him on his way. Once the prison staff had finally realised someone was missing the next morning, a manhunt began across France, and according to Vice, the escapee was picked up pretty quickly. A mere 24 hours after the manhunt had been launched, the prisoner was found climbing his way out of a cellar in Sathoney-Camp, just north of Lyon. He did not resist when the police arrested him, French authorities confirmed. However, his cellmate - who is now alleged to have plotted the escape with him - has not been found since. Corbas Prison has been under scrutiny recently due to overcrowding - with critics claiming that the likelihood of this kind of escape only increases with prisons operating over capacity. As of May this year, there were around 1200 prisoners in the maximum security facility of Corbas, which has a capacity of 678. This means the facility is holding nearly double the amount of prisoners than it has capacity for. The number of prisoners being so high, "obviously makes the prison officers' job somewhat more difficult than it might otherwise be," prison service chief Cauwel told the local media. He added that there was a possibility officers had not noticed the escape for an entire day, because as soon as a space becomes empty, the cells "are immediately refilled".
Time of India
21-07-2025
- Time of India
Bizarre jailbreak: How French prisoner escaped in released cellmate's laundry bag; went unnoticed for 24 hours
AI-generated representative image A 20-year-old inmate, Elyazid A, nicknamed "the Joker" or "the Equaliser", chose a unique way to escape from a French prison- concealed in fellow inmate's laundry bag, who was being released. The inmate serving several sentences escaped by hiding in the luggage of his inmate who complete his sentence, the Prison Service said in a statement to AFP. He "took advantage of the liberation of his fellow inmate to hide himself in his luggage and get out," the statement said. However, the authorities re-apprehended him later in a village cellar last week, approximately 25km from Lyon-Corbas prison, according to Guardian News. The prison staff failed to notice his absence for 24 hours. Reports indicate he escaped by hiding in a large plastic laundry bag filled with clothes, which his released cellmate transported out on a trolley on Friday. The police continue their search for the accomplice cellmate. Multiple investigations have been launched by Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin, Lyon prosecutors, the French prison service and Lyon-Corbas facility to examine the escape circumstances. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 15 most beautiful women in the world Undo The national prison service head, Sébastien Cauwel, confirmed that Elyazid A, despite facing charges including criminal association and conspiracy to murder, was not considered a security threat. Cauwel described the escape method as exceptionally uncommon, attributing its success to significant internal failures. The incident raised questions about systemic issues within the facility, primarily stemming from staff-related shortcomings rather than infrastructure problems. The severe overcrowding exacerbates these challenges for prison officers. Lyon-Corbas prison currently houses almost 1,220 inmates despite its 678-person capacity. A May report by the Lyon bar association urged immediate action to address overcrowding and maintain basic human rights. The French prison system accommodates 85,000 inmates in facilities designed for under 63,000 people. Cauwel noted that vacant cells are immediately filled, potentially contributing to oversight failures. According to a 2024 Council of Europe assessment, French prisons rank third in EU overcrowding rates, behind Cyprus and Romania. The country has witnessed numerous dramatic escapes, including about 20 helicopter breakouts since the 1980s, reported The Guardian. The prison service faces a shortage of at least 5,000 officers. Recent incidents include armed attacks on prison facilities, with 21 arrests in April following assaults, including gunfire at Toulon prison's entrance. Drug cartels have targeted prison facilities, damaging officers' housing and burning vehicles, responding to increased government enforcement and stricter regulations for imprisoned crime leaders.
Metro
15-07-2025
- Metro
Inmate escapes prison by hiding in pal's laundry bag - but it didn't last long
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Gone are the days of scaling prison walls or digging holes out of Alcatraz. If a prisoner wants to escape their cell, the best method appears to be climbing into a plastic bag. At least that how one creative inmate found freedom in France last week – before he was quickly tracked down and locked up again. Elyazid A, 20, known as 'the Joker' or 'the Equaliser', hid in a large laundry bag filled with clothes. He was then wheeled out of Lyon-Corbas prison on a trolley by one of his jail buddies, as he was released last Friday. A video circulating on social media even appears to show the blue and white stripped bag in question – it must have been a tight squeeze! It took 24 hours for officers to realise 'the Joker' had played a trick on them. They eventually tracked Elyazid A down and arrested him on Monday morning as he left a cellar on the outskirts of Lyon. He had been serving at least two prison sentences and was under investigation for alleged criminal association and conspiracy to murder. His cellmate is still being sought by police. Escape from Alcatraz Three inmates in the notorious island prison of Alcatraz, off the coast of San Francisco, went missing in June 1972. They had spent two years digging an escape route through cell walls and constructing a raft to sail to freedom. Dummies were even placed in the prisoners' beds – meaning guards didn't notice their absence until the next morning. Investigators later concluded the three men had drowned as they sailed to freedom. The Great Escape. Seventy-six prisoners escaped a Nazi war camp in March 1944 by digging tunnels underneath it. More than 600 captees were involved in constructing the 30 foot deep and 2 foot wide tunnels. Of the 76 who got out, 73 were recaptured. Hitler ordered half of them executed as an example. Maze Prison escape One of the most escape-proof prisons in Europe fell victim to biggest prison escape since the Second World War. After months of planning and smuggling in hand guns, prisoners belonging to the IRA simultaneously held prison officers hostage in September 1983 in Maze Prison in Northern Ireland. Inmates highjacked a lorry and most escaped over a fence. Thirty-eight got out in total. The director of France's prison administration Sebastien Cauwel said the escape was 'extremely rare' and pointed to overcrowding in the prison. More Trending He told BFMTV: 'This is an extremely rare event that we have never experienced in this administration and which clearly reveals a whole series of serious dysfunctions. 'This facility has an occupancy rate of 170%. This clearly makes working conditions more difficult for our staff. 'What this incident reveals is rather an accumulation of material errors, possibly faults, which the investigation will bring to light.' Investigations into the escape has been ordered by the justice minister Gérald Darmanin, with Lyon public prosecutors, the French prison service and Lyon-Corbas jail itself doing the same. Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: Middle class parties hit by lumpy skin disease MORE: Charles Bronson says 'now you're in hell' in new message to people viewing his art MORE: Feminist hero Gisele Pelicot receives France's highest civilian honour
The Guardian
14-07-2025
- The Guardian
French prisoner rearrested days after escape in cellmate's laundry bag
A prisoner who escaped from a French jail hidden in the laundry bag of another detainee who was released on Friday has been rearrested, authorities have said, amid a continuing debate over prison security and overcrowding. Elyazid A, 20, known as 'the Joker' or 'the Equaliser', was detained early on Monday morning as he emerged from a cellar in a village about 15 miles (25km) from Lyon-Corbas, the prison he had escaped from on Friday. Prison officers had not noticed his disappearance until he had been gone for 24 hours. They said he escaped in a large plastic laundry bag filled with clothes wheeled out of the prison on a trolley by one of his cellmates who was released on Friday. The cellmate is still being sought, police said. The justice minister, Gérald Darmanin, has ordered an investigation into the circumstances of the escape, as have Lyon public prosecutors, the French prison service and Lyon-Corbas jail itself. Sébastien Cauwel, the national prison service chief, said Elyazid A, who was in prison for a range of relatively minor offences but also under investigation for alleged criminal association and conspiracy to murder, had not been flagged as a security risk. Cauwel told BFMTV that the escape method was 'extremely rare' and the fact it had succeeded was 'the consequence of a series of dysfunctions – serious and inadmissible dysfunctions – inside this prison, which are now being fully investigated'. He said the episode appeared to be a result of 'human rather than material' failing inside the prison, but added that severe overcrowding 'obviously makes the prison officers' job somewhat more difficult than it might otherwise be'. Lyon-Corbas prison was designed for 678 inmates but holds almost 1,220, according to report in May by the Lyon bar association, which called for an 'urgent end to overcrowding so as to respect fundamental rights and human dignity'. France's total prison population of 85,000 is housed in jails meant to accommodate fewer than 63,000, Cauwel said. He said it was possible officers had not noticed the escape because cells that were no longer fully occupied 'are immediately refilled'. According to a 2024 Council of Europe report, France's 186 prisons have the worst overcrowding rate in the EU after those in Cyprus and Romania. Spectacular escapes are not uncommon, with nearly 20 helicopter breakouts since the 1980s. Unions say the prison service is understaffed by at least 5,000 officers. In April, 21 people were arrested after a wave of attacks hit multiple French jails, with automatic weapons fired at the entrance to Toulon prison in the south of the country. In other incidents, cars were set alight and prison officers' accommodation was vandalised in what media described as a 'declaration of war' by drug cartels after a government crackdown on traffickers and the imposition of tougher conditions for kingpins operating inside jails. The justice ministry has said it is working to improve general prison conditions, with measures including new high-security prisons for the most dangerous detainees aimed at combating organised crime that often continues to be run from inside jails.
Euronews
14-07-2025
- Euronews
French police catch fugitive who escaped from jail in cellmate's bag
A 20-year-old inmate who escaped from a detention facility near Lyon by hiding inside a fellow detainee's luggage has been arrested three days after his prison break, French authorities confirmed on Monday. The man, identified as Elyazid A, originally from Mayotte, was apprehended around 6 am Monday in a basement in Sathonay-Camp, a small town north of Lyon, according to the Lyon public prosecutor's office. He had been on the run since last Friday, when he evaded guards at Lyon-Corbas prison. No shots were fired and no one was injured during the arrest, which was carried out by officers from the Central Office for the Fight Against Organised Crime (OCLCO) and the specialised anti-crime unit DCOS 69, domestic media reported. Elyazid A had been held in pre-trial detention for charges of murder committed as part of an organised gang and for firearms offences. According to information obtained by French media outlet Franceinfo, he concealed himself in a large bag belonging to his cellmate, who was being released that day. The accomplice used a borrowed luggage trolley to transport his belongings to a waiting car. It was only the following morning that prison staff realised Elyazid A was missing. Authorities have described the escape as highly unusual, noting that it required no external accomplices, explosives or helicopters — just a bag on four wheels. A red notice was issued by Interpol in the hours following the escape, alerting police worldwide to locate and detain the fugitive. The second man, believed to be the one who carried the bag, remains at large and is actively sought for suspected complicity in the escape. As reported by domestic media, the Lyon prosecutor has launched a formal investigation into 'escape in an organised gang' and 'criminal association'. The case is being handled by the Rhône division for organised and specialised crime. France's prison service has also opened an internal investigation into the security lapse. In a statement, the service said it would 'take all appropriate disciplinary measures.' Lyon-Corbas prison, where the escape took place, has long struggled with overcrowding. As of 1 June, it held 1,222 inmates in facilities built for just 678.
