Two men are on the run from a prison south of Paris after giving guards the slip during an excursion in the forest, French police and prosecutors said Wednesday.
Claiming an urgent need to relieve themselves during the running race with other prisoners and guards in the Fontainebleau forest, the two men never returned, a source close to the case told AFP.
Prosecutors said police in nearby Evry are investigating the escape of the men, who were being held at the massive Fleury-Merogis prison — Europe’s largest — in the Essonne department.
“Every resource has been deployed” to recapture them, they added.
One of the inmates had been convicted for a drug offence and was due to be released in 2024, the public prosecutor said.
The other was serving a sentence for sexual assault and sexual exhibition until 2026.
The prisoners’ outing to the forest was granted to them as part of a process of sentencing adjustments, the interregional director of prison administration Stephane Scotto explained.
While this case was not successful, the programme has worked well for other prisoners and helps prevents recidivism, he said.
“Fortunately, we are dealing with isolated events,” he said, adding the judicial authority would be more vigilant in the future.
Fleury-Merogis saw another escape in June, when an inmate used a cradle installed for building work to escape via the roof.
On August 1, the overcrowded prison held 3,922 people including women and minors, an occupancy rate of 137.5 percent, according to justice ministry figures.