Fugitive rapist caught in Berlin
In Berlin, a prisoner sentenced for rape escaped during a monitored release. A week later, the 57-year-old is back in custody. His escape will have consequences.
Just over a week after his escape from the Berlin Justice Prison (JVA) Tegel, a prisoner sentenced for rape is once again behind bars. The Senatsjustizverwaltung of the federal capital announced the capture of the escapee. The 57-year-old man fled during a monitored visit to his mother in Neukölln on a Saturday. "I am relieved and happy that the escaped prisoner was caught today," Justice Senator Felor Badenberg stated. "Every minute on the loose is one minute too many."
The man reportedly used an unobserved moment during the monitored visit to the toilet and then disappeared through the apartment door. According to the Justice Administration, he had previously been escorted for social reasons on 42 occasions. All of these escorts had ended without incident.
The man was sentenced to five years in prison for bodily harm and rape and has been housed in protective custody in JVA Tegel since 2015. Protective custody can be ordered to protect the population from dangerous criminals. After serving their sentence, they are not released but instead transferred to another institution or department.
As a consequence of the case, Badenberg announced on a Wednesday that the so-called social escorts of prisoners would be suspended for the time being. The conditions of monitored escorts will be reviewed and possibly adjusted, Badenberg added.
The suspension of social escorts for prisoners follows the rape convict's escape from JVA Tegel in Berlin. This international incident highlighted the need for stricter monitoring during such visits. The escaped rapist had a history of 42 supervised visits without any incidents, raising questions about the effectiveness of current safety measures.
