Walter Finch
A COMEDY of errors by prison staff – which included guiding the prisoner to the exit – led to the Christmas Eve escape of a young gangland hitman who already has two alleged murders to his name.
Yussef ML, 20, famously known in the Ceuta underworld as ‘El Pastilla,’ preyed on the poor protocol and general incompetence of undertrained staff to make good his dramatic escape – with a little help from his visiting family.
The feared sicario had only just been transferred to Alcala Meco prison in Madrid from Cadiz on December 4, after he became a target for prisoners from rival gangs.
Footage assembled from various cameras showed that the young killer took advantage of a moment in which he was waiting to be assigned a room to meet with four of his family members.
Just as a group of 11 relatives of other prisoners who had finished their visit and were heading towards the exit, Yussef mixed in with them.
Images from the cameras suggested that some of the visitors were aware that a prisoner was attempting to mix in with them.
In a control room where each visitor has his or her ID card returned to them one by one, Yussef slipped through a side door that was open, without anyone noticing.
A few meters later, Yussef found a second door. Security protocols dictate that this one must be closed if the other one is open. However, the alleged hitman also found it open and was able to leave through there.
He continued on his way for 300 metres until he reached an outer control room near the prison walls, which are guarded by officers of the Guardia Civil.
As he tried to get past a vehicle barrier, these officers stopped him. Astonishingly, instead of asking him to identify himself, they merely redirected him to the pedestrian exit.
Finally, the images show the young hitman calmly walking out of the visitor exit. Once he gets a certain distance away from the complex, he makes a break for it and disappears.
His family members, meanwhile, are still back in the visitor area waiting to meet with El Pastilla, apparently unaware of his escape.
Now at large, a frenzied manhunt is underway by humiliated law enforcement authorities.
The whereabouts of El Pastilla remain a mystery, with some speculating that he may have already fled the country.
READ MORE:
- Ceuta killer and gang member, 20, waltzes out of Madrid jail concealed among his family after they visited him on Christmas Eve
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