Escaping prisoners tunneling out of jail are met by waiting police officers

This is the moment a group of around 20 inmates tried to break out of prison through a tunnel – only to be met by a team of waiting police officers.

Officers in Maracaibo, Venezuela, had been going through a training course outside when they saw the inmates try to escape.

The officers had to assist the suspected criminals through the tight space before leading them back inside the prison.

The cops weren’t carrying weapons, but the prisoners were also unarmed – meaning officers were able to apprehend them quickly.

As the tunnel opening was so small, the escapees were only able to squeeze straight into the arms of the waiting cops.

They were promptly rounded up and sent back inside to the detention centre at the police headquarters on April 17.

The prisoners were dragged back inside after they were apprehended (Picture: Jam Press)

Onlookers watched as officers detained the prisoners again(Picture: Jam Press)

Most could barely fit through the small hole (Picture: Jam Press)

Mayor Rafael Ramírez Colina posted on social media that ‘everything is now under control’, adding that three inmates needed treatment for minor injuries.

Police Chief Commissioner Gustavo Basabe said they are investigating the attempted break-out to prevent a similar situation occurring in the future.

In March, a state of emergency was declared in Haiti after gangs stormed a jail and released 4,000 prisoners.

Almost all of the estimated 4,000 inmates of the National Penitentiary managed to get out, leaving the usually overcrowded facility eerily empty, with no guards in sight.

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Those held at the jail included killers, kidnappers and other violent criminals, the government said.

Some prisoners chose to remain at the prison, including 18 former Colombian soldiers accused of working as mercenaries in the assassination of the president in 2021.

One of them shared a video pleading for help amid clashes: ‘Please, please help us,’ Francisco Uribe, said. ‘They are massacring people indiscriminately inside the cells.’

Family members also rushed to the prison to check on loved ones, with information scarce and phone lines down.

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