Frustrated S Africa police hunt "Houdini of C-Max"

JOHANNESBURG, Nov 25 (Reuters) South African police expressed frustration on Friday in their search for a dangerous criminal dubbed ''the Houdini of C-Max'' who news reports said slithered out of prison covered in petroleum jelly.

''He must be the devil's child himself because we get new leads every day but he has not yet been arrested,'' investigating officer Arnold Boonstra yesterday told the SAPA news agency ''He seems to have the luck of the devil.'' Ananias Mathe, a Mozambican national awaiting trial on rape, murder and other charges, removed a bulletproof window at Pretoria's C-Max prison last weekend to make his escape.

News reports said he coated himself with petroleum jelly and squeezed through the opening, which measured just 20 by 60 cm.

Climbing down the outside wall of the prison, Mathe reportedly used one greasy hand to scrawl an expletive message taunting police.

Police have not been able to explain how Mathe freed himself from handcuffs or give other details of the escape, the first reported at the top security C-Max prison in its 36-year history.

Mathe, who has since been dubbed ''The Houdini of C-Max'' by South Africa's sensation-hungry media, has evaded capture as police made several wrong turns in a nationwide hunt for him.

On Monday, a church minister in North West province was shot and wounded by police after being mistakenly identified as the fugitive, while another man was arrested on Thursday near the Mozambique border but later released after it was determined he was not Mathe.

Correctional Services Minister Ngconde Balfour has called for an investigation into Mathe's escape, saying it appeared unlikely he could have done it without help from prison staff.

REUTERS BDP VV0911