Six convicts escape from custody in Dagestan through tunnel dug under prison wall

The entire staff of the regional Interior Ministry in Russia’s southern Republic of Dagestan has been put on high alert after six prisoners escaped from a penal colony in the region, Interfax reports, citing the department’s press service.

According to the regional branch of the Federal Penitentiary Service, during rounds on the evening of September 22, prison guards at Colony Number 2 in the town of Shamkhal discovered a tunnel dug under the prison wall. A prisoner count then revealed that six of the convicts had escaped.

According to reports from law enforcement agencies, the escaped prisoners were serving sentences ranging from 8 to 15 years. Two of them were convicted of murder.

All city and district police departments in Dagestan and its neighboring regions have received all-points bulletins about the escaped convicts.