A prisoner convicted in the Soumya rape and murder case in 2011, Govindachamy, was recaptured in hours of escaping from the high-security Kannur Central Jail on Friday.
The police said Govindachamy broke out of his cell in Block 10 of the prison between 4 a.m. and 6:30 a.m. when the break-out was reported. A massive search operation was mounted following the report of the escape.
On the basis of public feedback and CCTV monitoring, he was finally found about 11 a.m. hiding in a well near the office of the National Sample Survey in the Talap locality.
Kannur: 2011 Soumya rape and murder accused Govindachamy escapes from Kannur Central Jail.
Govindachamy was serving a life sentence for the rape and murder of 23-year-old Soumya, who was attacked while travelling on a passenger train from Ernakulam to Shoranur on February 1,… https://t.co/ccjOfbU5FC pic.twitter.com/Gz3jTdNySr
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“We received the news that he had escaped at about 6.30 am. It was communicated to all the wings of the police. Public was warned through the media. We reviewed CCTV visuals in the city and received a lot of information from the public. He was discovered hiding in a well of an abandoned compound in Talap,” Kannur Superintendent of Police P Nidhin Raj said.
SP Raj further stated that the prisoner must have prepared for the escape for at least a week. “It is found that he was preparing for escape over the last few days,” he said. The authorities are currently investigating if any insiders from within the prison system helped him escape.
Govindachamy was sentenced to life for the gruesome beating and raping of 23-year-old Soumya on February 1, 2011. Soumya, a Shornur resident who worked for a supermarket in Palakkad district, had boarded the Ernakulam–Shornur passenger train when the accused is believed to have attacked her after the train left Vallathol Nagar railway station.
He allegedly assaulted her by banging her head against the wall of the compartment and pushed her off the moving train. Jumping off after her, he located her lying injured alongside the tracks, took her into nearby forest, and raped her. He was picked up the next day at the Palakkad railway station.
Soumya died on February 6, 2011, from injuries sustained during the assault while in treatment at the Government Medical College, Thrissur.
