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SINGAPORE: An alleged leader of the Jemaah Islamiah (JI) militant
network escaped from his Singapore detention center by climbing out
a toilet window, Home Affairs Minister Wong Kan Seng said Monday.
Singapore prides itself on rigorous
antiterrorist measures but a massive security dragnet has failed to
catch Mas Selamat bin Kastari, who escaped nearly two months ago.
Wong, who was reporting to parliament on the
findings of an inquiry led by a retired judge, cited windows without
grills, surveillance cameras that weren’t working and a slow
reaction from guards as contributing to Kastari’s flight.
The minister has previously said Kastari—who
walks with a limp—disappeared on February 27 after he was taken
from his cell to the family visit room to await his relatives, and
then asked to go to the toilet.
“Mas Selamat climbed through the toilet
ventilation window and out of the family visitation block,” Wong
said, adding that the window was not covered by grills.
-- AFP
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