Prisoner flees from coronavirus isolation ward in Kerala jail

An undertrail prisoner, who was admitted to the Coronavirus isolation ward at the central prison, managed to escape after jumping the compound wall, jail authorities said on Friday. The inmate, suspected to have fled the prison ward last night, was identified as Ajay Babu, a native of Aamirpur in Uttar Pradesh.

An accused in a bank burglary case in neighbouring Kasaragod district, Babu had been lodged at the isolation ward within the prison since March 25, a senior jail official said.

"He was shifted to the isolation ward as he was arrested from Kasaragod, a hotspot of covid19 in the state. We suspect that he escaped in the night...we noticed his absence this morning," he told PTI.

A search has been intensifed to nab him, the official added.