Inmate escapes from SA prison, returns with bottles of booze
An inmate has escaped from a South Australian prison and allegedly returned with bottles of alcohol, raising concerns over security and safety at the facility.
The woman was missing from the Adelaide Pre-Release Centre for about two hours on Friday night.
An inmate has escaped from Adelaide Pre-Release Centre allegedly returned with bottles of alcohol, raising questions over safety and security at the facility. 9News
She then allegedly snuck back into the prison with several bottles of alcohol.
The government has denied the breach put anyone at risk.
Correctional services minister Michael Brown said the department was made aware an inmate was absent “for a period of time”.
“That person has now been isolated, and an investigation is now under way,” Brown said.
Public Service Association correctional officer liaison and vice-president Craig Bates said the union was seeing “more and more security breaches” across the entire system.
“This is not the first time a prisoner has been able to escape the pre-release centre,” Bates said.
“I think this is about the second in six months or so.
“It’s about time the department steps up and does something about it.”
The department today acknowledged the failures.
“These events do occur, it's what happens when you have a minimum security arrangement at a pre-release centre like this,” Brown said.
Public Service Association correctional officer liaison and vice president Craig Bates. 9News
However, Brown denied there was any risk to the community or prison staff.
“The assessment has been in this particular case that there was no threat to public safety,” Brown said.
The Public Service Association strongly disagrees.
“If she's returned with alcohol she could have just as easily returned with a firearm, for example,” Bates said.
The union is demanding security be stepped up at the facility including more cameras and motion-detection technology similar to what is already being used in higher-security prisons across the state.
Brown said an investigation and review was under way.
“I’m sure those are the sorts of things that will be looked at,” Brown said.
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