One prison escapee arrested after police open fire in Kalaburagi

Published 15 July 2026 · health

One of the three prisoners who escaped from the Central Prison in Kalaburagi on Tuesday was arrested on Wednesday morning after he attacked police personnel

One of the three prisoners who escaped from the Central Prison in Kalaburagi on Tuesday was arrested on Wednesday morning after he attacked police personnel during a search operation, prompting an officer to open fire and injure him before taking him into custody. The arrested prisoner, 28-year-old Santosh Basappa Metre of Santpur village in Aurad taluk of Bidar district, was lodged in the prison in connection with a case under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. The police said that three special teams were formed to track down the three prisoners. Acting on a tip-off that Santosh was near the Kapnoor Industrial Area on Humnabad Road on the outskirts of Kalaburagi, a police team launched a search operation in the early hours of Wednesday.

According to the police, Santosh attacked personnel Kalyankumar of the Farhatabad Police Station and Prakash of the University Police Station with a sharp-edged weapon while attempting to evade arrest. Farhatabad Police Inspector Hussain Basha then opened fire, injuring the prisoner before taking him into custody. The injured police personnel and the prisoner have been admitted to the Gulbarga Institute of Medical Sciences (GIMS) Hospital for treatment. The three escaped from the Central Prison in Kalaburagi in the early hours of Tuesday, after scaling the prison’s security wall. The other two escapees have been identified as Mastan of Islampur village in Basavakalyan taluk and Sagar Bhimaraya of Bakkachowdi village in Bidar taluk.

According to the police, two of the prisoners were lodged in connection with cases under the POCSO Act, while the third is serving a life sentence in a murder case. They escaped from Barrack No 5 of the prison. The escape came to light on Tuesday morning, prompting prison authorities and the police to launch a search operation. Now, two of the prisoners remain at large and efforts are under way to trace them. According to the police, the three escaped at 4 a.m. after scaling the prison’s high-security perimeter wall. CCTV footage shows the prisoners climbing over the wall before fleeing the prison premises.

The jailbreak has raised questions over security arrangements at the prison. Investigators are examining whether the prisoners received any assistance from within the prison, including how they were outside their barracks during the night, gained access to the perimeter wall and managed to escape. The role of prison personnel, if any, is also under investigation.