GEORGETOWN (CMC):

Fifteen prisoners are still on the run after a major jailbreak in Berbice on Saturday.

Police report that 18 men broke out of the New Amsterdam prison, using a hacksaw to cut through steel bars. They then jumped a fence to freedom.

Three of the men have since been recaptured while the other 15 are believed to be hiding out in cane fields at the back of Lochaber, West Canje, Berbice, Stabroek News reported.

The incident has reportedly unnerved Berbicians who have suffered a series of high-profile robberies and killings recently.

The escape occurred moments after Home Affairs Minister Clement Rohee had touched down in the Berbician capital to hold consultation with fishermen and the business community.

Unclear about hacksaw

Director of Prisons, Dale Erskine, said that about 150 prisoners had been in the lunchroom with no officers present when the jailbreak occurred at about 1:15 p.m.

Erskine coincidently was at the facility at the time of the break, holding a meeting with senior officers. It was during this meeting, he said, that he heard someone shout, "Some men jumping over the fence."

The prison boss was unable to provide a clear answer as to how the hacksaw found its way into the prison when questioned by reporters after the incident.

"Smart and experienced officers should be able to pick up things like that, but these prisoners come up with different and innovative ways to conceal things," Erskine explained. "You won't believe the things they do to conceal these things and they go undetected because the prisoners are crafty."