Sudan requests INTERPOL help in nabbing the killers of a USAID official

June 12, 2010 (WASHINGTON) — The Sudanese government today asked the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) to issue orange notices in order to locate four men sentenced to death for killing a USAID employee two years ago in the Sudanese capital who managed to escape prison this week.

An Orange notice is defined by INTERPOL as one that is issued “to warn police, public entities and other international organizations about potential threats from disguised weapons, parcel bombs and other dangerous materials”

The Sudanese police said in a statement yesterday that the convicts broke out through an old sewage pipe and escaped the notorious Kober prison. This is the first time in the history of the Sudan that a prisoner succeeds in making his way out of Kober which is considered a maximum security facility where political figures are normally held when detained.

The fugitives who boarded a Toyota Land cruiser after their escape clashed briefly with police at a checkpoint northwest of the twin capital city of Omdurman but still managed to overrun it, killing a police driver on spot.

Sudanese media quoted officials as saying that they are closing on the suspects expecting them to be captured in the coming hours.

However, the INTERPOL released a statement today saying that at the request of the Khartoum it issued an international security alert for Abdelraouf Abu Zaid Mohamed Hamzza, Mohamed Makawi Ibrahim Mohamed, Abdelbasit Alhaj Alhassan Haj Hamad and Mohanad Osman Yousif Mohamed.

“Based on identifying information provided by INTERPOL’s National Central Bureau (NCB) in Khartoum, including the fugitives’ photographs, the Command and Co-ordination Centre at the General Secretariat headquarters in Lyon has issued the Orange Notice security alert to law enforcement officials in each of its 188 member countries” the statement said.

“All NCBs and INTERPOL Regional Bureaus have also been requested to circulate the alert to all relevant national and immigration authorities to assist in the location and identification of the convicted murderers”.

The new development may be an indication that Sudan believes the four men are attempting to flee the country.

“The escape of these dangerous convicted murderers who showed no hesitation in firing upon police, leaving one officer dead and another injured, is a significant threat to the safety and security of citizens, and Sudan should be commended for their swift actions in alerting the global law enforcement community and the wider public,” said INTERPOL’s Executive Director of Police Services, Jean-Michel Louboutin.

“The information included in the INTERPOL alert which has been sent to police around the world, will significantly increase the chances of these four killers being quickly recaptured. These men are clearly dangerous and the public are advised not to approach them, but instead report any sightings to their local police,” warned Louboutin”.

“The INTERPOL General Secretariat will continue to work closely with NCB Khartoum and other NCBs to provide whatever additional assistance is required to locate and arrest these dangerous fugitives” he added.

Yesterday the Sudanese lawyer for Granville’s family, Taha Ibrahim told the London based Al-Sharq Al-Awsat that the escape was a “political partnership that took place from inside and outside Sudan”.

Ibrahim predicted that the four men will try to head towards Somalia and expressed doubt over the police version of their escape noting that all detainees sentenced to death in Kober prison have cuffs on their hands and feet.

In Washington, the State Department said it expected Sudanese authorities to apprehend the escaped convicts and ensure that justice is served.

“The United States Government expects that Sudanese authorities will apprehend these convicted murderers and ensure that justice is served for the men killed and their families” US State Department spokesman Philip Crowley said in a statement.

John Granville and his Sudanese driver Abdel-Rahman Abbas Rahma were shot dead on 2008 New Years Eve by men believed to be belonging to an Islamic militant group Ansar al-Tawhid which claimed responsibility for the killing.

Granville was the first American to be killed in Sudan since 1973, when two diplomats were slain by Palestinian militants.

The defendants sought an overrule of the death penalty by the appeals court particularly after it was reported that the driver’s family waived their right to request that the men be executed in accordance with Islamic Shari’a law. However in December the court upheld the capital punishment.

(ST)