United Nations police are hunting five prisoners who escaped from jail in East Timor, raising security concerns as the nation prepares for elections following political turmoil and violence last year.
The five escaped from the Becora prison in the capital, Dili, on Saturday, officials said.
The jailbreak was the second from the jail since unrest in May last year that killed at least 33 people and led to the downfall of the prime minister.
Four of the men were in pre-trial detention for arson while the fifth was serving a prison term for theft, a police spokeswoman said
Another man who also escaped in the jailbreak was arrested shortly afterwards.
The United Nations is heading a peacekeeping mission in Dili that began soon after the May violence.
Last September, 57 inmates escaped from the prison, including renegade military leader Alfredo Reinado, blamed for some of the worst violence in May.
He and most of the other escaped convicts remain fugitives.
Gang warfare
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Rebel leader Alfredo Reinado remains a fugitive
after escaping jail last year [Reuters] |
East Timor is due to hold presidential elections in April that some fear could spark more violence.
The tiny nation won independence from Indonesia in 1999 in a referendum ballot.
The country was thrust into chaos in April and May after Mari Alkatiri, the then-prime minister, dismissed 600 mutinous soldiers.
Subsequent clashes on the streets between rival police and army factions then spilled over into widespread gang warfare, looting and arson.
Alkatiri stepped down amid intense international pressure and was replaced by Nobel prize-winner Jose Ramos-Horta.