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Dijon Jailbreak: Two Inmates Allegedly Saw Through Cell Bars and Escaped Using Bed Sheets

01:08 PM, 11/29/2025
Dijon Jailbreak: Two Inmates Allegedly Saw Through Cell Bars and Escaped Using Bed Sheets

What happened: Two inmates allegedly sawed through cell bars and escaped the Maison d'arrêt de Dijon by lowering themselves on bed sheets.

Context: The 19- and 32-year-old detainees were held in separate violent-crime cases. The prison — built in 1853 — is overcrowded, housing about 311 people in space designed for roughly 180.

Aftermath: Staff and unions had warned for months after finding saw blades and called for more staff and stronger gratings; investigations into the escape are ongoing.

Two inmates reportedly escaped from the Maison d'arrêt de Dijon this week after allegedly sawing through the metal bars of their cells and lowering themselves out of the building using bed sheets before dawn.

Prosecutor Olivier Caracotch said the pair "seem to have sawn through bars" and "fled using bed sheets." Authorities identified the fugitives as a 19-year-old held in pretrial detention since October 2024 on an attempted murder charge linked to drugs, and a 32-year-old detained since 2023 on allegations of threats and violence against a partner.

The Dijon detention facility, originally opened in 1853, is overcrowded and in poor condition. The justice ministry reports the prison holds about 311 inmates in space built for roughly 180, prompting repeated warnings from staff and unions about security risks.

Ahmed Saih, a union official, said the inmates used "old-fashioned, manual saw blades," and that staff had previously discovered saw blades inside the jail.

Staff and unions say they had warned for months about the risk of a breakout and have urged authorities to provide more personnel and install stronger gratings that cannot be cut. An inmate released on Nov. 27 after eight months described extremely crowded conditions: "Prison is very hard here. There were three of us in a cell: two on bunk beds and one sleeping on the floor."

The Dijon escape comes 10 days after a reported breakout in Rennes, where a prisoner reportedly fled during an outing. That incident led to the dismissal of a prison director by Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin. Prison directors' unions have criticized recent resource allocations, saying high-security units have been prioritized while many other facilities remain underfunded.

French authorities continue to investigate how the saw blades were obtained and the precise circumstances of the escape. Local and national prosecutors and prison officials are expected to provide updates as the inquiry proceeds.

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