Tongan Gaol Breakers

Escape To Sea

Nukualofa, Dec. 15.

FOUR prisoners escaped from the local prison at Matakl’eua on the night of November 29. Three of them had been confined in solitary cells in a de tached concrete building; the fourth cut his way out through the flooring of the main prison establishment and then broke the locks on the cells of his comrades.

Before making their get-away they cut the telephone line connecting the prison establishment with Nukualofa appar ently to delay recapture.

Their escape was not detected until near midnight when the Head Gaoler, returning from Nukualofa, saw the cut telephone wires near the main gate of the prison.

Not until next morning was it dis covered that the escapees had sailed from Nuku’alofa waterfront during the night in a small sailing boat. About two days later a report came from the Island of Atata stating that the escapees had pro visioned their boat there with coconuts and native foods. At this writing they are still at large, somewhere on the South Pacific Ocean, One of the gaol breakers, Mosese Mahe 'Eteaki, was one of the prisoners who escaped from prison in June, 1945, and made a long journey to the Lau£ Group of Fiji by canoe.

A young Fijian, Tevita Vunisa, was found dead at the 7th level of Smith Shaft, Emperor Mine, Vatakoula on Nov ember 28. It was obvious that he had fallen from a great height before striking the top of one of the cages used for hoisting ore. As his sulu was found at the surface, it is believed that he fell from this level.