He was already locked in a single cell because he had escaped before.
That was supposed to be the end of it. Maximum security. Solitary confinement. An extra charge hanging over him for the last breakout.
On Sunday, Edward Khomotso Madiba cut through the burglar bar door and disappeared.
The Escape
Madiba got out of Rooigrond Maximum Correctional Centre, near Mahikeng in the North West, on Sunday.
The Department of Correctional Services confirmed the escape in a statement on Monday and said preliminary information points to one thing: he cut through the burglar bar door of the single cells.
"DCS has activated its security detail and is working with other law enforcement agencies to locate and apprehend the escapee as a matter of urgency," the department said.
It added that it is putting "all necessary measures" in place to get him back behind bars.
Who He Is
Madiba is serving 20 years.
His sentence covers robbery with aggravating circumstances, possession of a firearm and ammunition, kidnapping, and a parole violation.
On top of that, he was facing a further charge relating to his previous escape from the same maximum-security facility. That extra charge is the reason he was being held in the single-cell section in the first place.
He escaped from there too.
Eight Officials Under Investigation
This is the part of the story that changes its shape completely.
The department is investigating eight prison officials suspected of helping him get out.
All eight have been served with notices of contemplation of suspension while the investigation runs its course.
A man does not cut through a burglar bar door in a maximum-security single-cell unit quietly, quickly, or without something to cut with. The department appears to be asking the obvious question.
A Full-Scale Investigation
Correctional services says it has launched a complete investigation into how this happened.
"Correctional services has also instituted a full-scale investigation into the circumstances surrounding the escape, including the security measures at the facility," the department said.
The purpose, it said, is to establish "how the escape occurred and to determine whether any negligence or breach of security contributed to the incident."
National commissioner Makgothi Samuel Thobakgale will visit Rooigrond on Tuesday "to establish the circumstances surrounding the escape, assess the security measures in place, and determine any areas requiring immediate intervention".
| Detail |
Information
|
|---|---|
| Escapee | Edward Khomotso Madiba |
| Facility | Rooigrond Maximum Correctional Centre, near Mahikeng, North West |
| Date of escape | Sunday |
| Sentence | 20 years |
| Convictions | Robbery with aggravating circumstances, firearm and ammunition possession, kidnapping, parole violation |
| Additional charge | Relating to a previous escape from the same facility |
| Where he was held | Single-cell facility |
| Method | Cut through the burglar bar door of the single cells |
| Officials implicated | Eight, served with notices of contemplation of suspension |
| Next step | National commissioner to visit Rooigrond on Tuesday |
The Public Appeal
The department is asking anybody with information that could help trace Madiba's whereabouts to alert law enforcement immediately.
He is a convicted armed robber and kidnapper with a firearm history and a proven talent for getting out of places designed to hold him. Members of the public should not approach him — the request is for information, not intervention.
- Crime Stop: 08600 10111
- MySAPS mobile application — tips can be submitted anonymously
The Uncomfortable Part
Rooigrond is a maximum-security facility. The single-cell unit is where the system puts the people it trusts least, including people who have already shown they will run.
Madiba was in that unit for exactly that reason. And he still got through a door.
Whether that says more about the burglar bars or about the eight people now facing suspension notices is, for the moment, the question the national commissioner is travelling to Mahikeng to answer.
