14 DAY TRIAL // In what could be a premiere in Quebec prison escapes, two inmates from the Saint-Jérôme jail in Canada have flown out of jail in a helicopter on Sunday, March 17.
CBC Canada details that they climbed a rope to the helicopter and made a clean escape. However, the incident set off a massive operation by local police, leading to the men being captured in a matter of hours.
[admark=1]“As far as I know, it's a first in Quebec. [...] It's exceptional,” describes jail supervisor Yves Galarneau. In fact, this method of fleeing the jail house is so uncommon, that there are no security measures in place for this type of incident.
“The suspects just took the rope in their hands and started fleeing,” police spokesman Benoit Richard describes, citing the account of one of the wardens.
36-year-old Hudon-Barbeau and 33-year-old Provencal Danny Provencal were caught in the Quebec area the same day they fled.
Hudon-Barbeau was caught first along with two other unnamed suspects, presumable accomplices, police announced before 8:30 p.m.
Provencal was apprehended just one hour later in Chertsey, 50 km (31 miles) north of the facility where the men were being held. A road block had been installed in Chertsey, in the proximity of St-Marguerite village.
“We have a lot of officers working on the site.
“They are all being transported to the nearest police station to be questioned by the investigators.
“They will be due in court [Monday] morning,” Richard noted.
Before the pair got caught, a man presenting himself as Hudon-Barbeau called a local radio station and explained how he was mistreated in jail and was ready to lose his life if anyone tried to stop him.
“The way they're treating me in there, it's unreal. [...] They won't let me be. They put me back in prison for nothing,” he said.