This is the bizarre moment a prisoner squeezes through the bars of his cell and strolls out of a police station – reportedly returning to grab his shoes before fleeing.
CCTV footage shows the man forcing his arms through a narrow gap before somehow squeezing his head and the rest of his body between the bars.
The entire escape takes around a minute.
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The prisoner, identified as Érick Celestino Gomes, 39, had been arrested just hours earlier following an alleged domestic violence incident.
He reportedly returned briefly to collect his shoes before walking out of the Central Police Station in Florianópolis, Brazil, in the early hours of Saturday (26 Sep).
Gomes had been arrested at around 5am in the city’s Pantanal neighbourhood following a dispute at a property containing a mechanical workshop.
Police said he appeared intoxicated and resisted officers, who used pepper spray to restrain him before taking him into custody.
Officers found Gomes’s then-partner, her daughter and a man who had allegedly tried to intervene at the property.
All three were allegedly assaulted during the incident.
Gomes was arrested on suspicion of bodily injury in a domestic violence context, while reports also cited allegations of threats, insults and aggravated property damage.
He was reportedly not handcuffed when he squeezed through the cell bars.
Police launched a manhunt after discovering he had escaped.
Prosecutors subsequently asked for his arrest to be converted into preventive detention.
A judge granted the request and issued an arrest warrant, saying Gomes had taken advantage of a moment of inattention at the police station.
The judge also cited the seriousness of the alleged assaults and Gomes’s history of domestic violence when ordering his preventive detention.
Urgent protective measures in favour of his former partner were also maintained.
The cell has since been sealed and is due to be modified after officers identified the gap used in the escape, as reported by Need To Know.
Gomes remains at large as police continue efforts to track him down.
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