An undertrial William A Sangma, who was allegedly involved in several incidents of crime, today escaped from police custody at the Tura Civil Hospital, the police said.
William A Sangma and another prisoner Rongsang A Sangma had complained of medical problems and were admitted to the Tura Civil Hospital last evening and fled at about 7.05 am.
"Preliminary reports available with us state that this morning when the nurses went into the Undertrial Prisoner (UTP) room, Rongsang tried to snatch a gun from the police personnel posted there. When the policemen were busy protecting their arms, both the prisoners escaped. Though Rongsang was apprehended before he could flee, William managed to escape," said SP of West Garo Hills, MGR Kumar.
A high alert has been sounded following the escape of the former chief of the Achik National Cooperative Army (ANCA) which was a group of hardened criminals involved in various crimes including murder, extortion and kidnapping among other such activities in and around the Garo Hills.
"We have mobilised extra teams to ensure that he is caught again while also setting up check points across all major exit points. Search parties have also been deployed to nab him," the SP said.
The police have announced a cash reward for information leading to the capture of the escapee.
Earlier, the former ANCA leader ran away from custody in Mendipathar in 2014 to form a criminal gang. He was once again apprehended in Goalpara district by a joint team of the police and the Army before being pushed into Meghalaya in the month of March, 2017.