The Ismailia Prosecution Authority ordered the detention of three police officers and 13 other police conscripts and personnel against the backdrop of a jail break on Friday when six prisoners were able to escape Ismailia prison, state media reported.
According to a statement by the Ministry of Interior issued on Friday, six inmates fled the Ismailia Future Central prison, rioting as they tried to escape and engaging in an exchange of fire with the police.
A civilian and an officer were killed in the clashes, which were reported to have lasted for six hours. The civilian, Ahmed Rizk, was said to “have been passing by during the incident” while the officer, a major named Mohamed Al-Husseini, was killed as he chased the inmates. A conscript was injured in the process.
Later that same day, local media reported that one of the escapees was arrested. The suspect told authorities that his breakout was facilitated by a secret internal informant who helped them acquire weapons, in exchange for a sum of EGP 100,000, according to the Sunday issue of state-owned newspaper Al-Ahram. Preliminary investigations corroborate this claim.
The six fugitives include three terrorist suspects who were arrested a week ago by National Security while trying to smuggle weapons through one of the villages on the borders of Ismailia to North Sinai, allegedly to carry out deadly attacks. The three others were detained for criminal charges, including theft and abduction, Al-Ahram reported.
