Sudurpaschim police arrest 1,460 escaped prisoners in nine months

Mahendranagar: Sudurpaschim Police have arrested 1,460 escaped prisoners over the past nine months. Individuals involved in various criminal cases who had been sentenced to imprisonment and fines by courts and the District Administration Office are being arrested and brought under legal action.

Sudurpaschim Provincial Police Office, Dhangadhi, spokesperson and Senior Superintendent of Police Padam Bista said that 1,460 escaped prisoners have been arrested and sent back to prison within the first nine months of the current fiscal year (mid-Chaitra). According to the Provincial Police Office, the highest number of arrests during this period was recorded in Kailali with 732 and Kanchanpur with 410.

Similarly, 101 escaped prisoners were arrested from Dadeldhura, 12 from Doti, 43 from Achham, 73 from Darchula, 9 from Baitadi, 58 from Bajhang, and 22 from Bajura, according to SSP Bista.

“Police teams have been deployed across all nine districts to arrest long-term fugitives,” he said. “The police are active in apprehending prisoners who escaped during the Jejani movement.”

According to SSP Bista, a total of 1,458 prisoners had escaped from prisons in the Far West during the Jejani movement held on Bhadra 23 and 24. Of them, 1,120 have already been arrested, while 338 are still at large. Police suspect that many of the escaped prisoners may have fled to India and are in hiding.

Meanwhile, police have launched a special campaign in Kanchanpur to arrest fugitive prisoners. District Police Office spokesperson and Deputy Superintendent of Police Hem Bahadur Shahi said that 76 fugitives have been arrested in the past week. “Most of those arrested are involved in drug-related cases,” he said.