(Reuters) – Spanish police have recaptured the last two of five inmates who staged a spectacular escape last year from a Portuguese high-security prison after discovering the Argentine and the Briton working for a drug gang in Alicante, police said on Friday.
The five escaped from Vale de Judeus prison during visiting hours in September with the help of a long ladder provided by an accomplice outside. Two Portuguese and one Georgian national were recaptured in the following months – one in Morocco, one in Portugal and the latter in Italy.
Now Spanish police have also nabbed Briton Mark Cameron Roscaleer, 36, imprisoned for violent crimes including robbery and torture committed in Portugal, and Argentine national Rodolfo Jose Lohrmann, 61.
Lohrmann was serving a 17-year sentence for crimes including a bank robbery and was awaiting extradition to his home country.
In a statement, police said they had discovered the two performing extortion and score-settling jobs for a drug ring in southeastern Spain after a victim of their death threats reported the events, leading to discover of their vehicle.
Police footage showed the moment of the arrest at a car service station, with officers jumping out of several cars and pinning the fugitives to the ground.
(Reporting by Andrei Khalip and David Latona; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)
