Indonesia recaptures French drug suspect after jailbreak

AFP  |  Mataram (Indonesia) 

A French drug suspect on the run since escaping from an Indonesian jail nearly two weeks ago has been recaptured, police said on Saturday.

-- who faces the death penalty if convicted -- was found hiding in a forest in North Lombok on Friday night, police said, and was returned to jail in Mataram, capital of the island.

Wearing dishevelled black clothes and looking tired, Dorfin initially tried to bribe officers to let him go.

"He didn't resist arrest, but wanted to bribe our officers," said Saturday, adding he was found following a tip-off from locals in the area.

After being checked by medical teams he was returned to jail.

The 35-year-old Frenchman was arrested in September allegedly carrying a false-bottomed suitcase filled with four kilogrammes (8.8 pounds) of drugs -- including cocaine, ecstasy and amphetamines -- at the airport on the holiday island next to

On Friday officials said a female had been arrested for allegedly helping Dorfin escape in exchange for Rp 14.5 million (around USD 1,000).

Jailbreaks are common in Indonesia, where corruption is endemic at all levels of society and inmates often held in squalid and poorly guarded prisons.

In 2017, four foreign inmates tunnelled their way out of

Two of them were captured a few days later, but an Australian and Malaysian are still at large.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

First Published: Sat, February 02 2019. 11:10 IST