Manila jail break timed with guard toilet break

MANILA, July 2 (Reuters) Seven men escaped from a police detention centre in Manila today by sawing off prison bars while the officer guarding them kept nipping out to the toilet due to an upset stomach.

''Every time the guard went to the toilet, the prisoners took out a small saw and cut off the bars of their cell,'' William Macavinta, a local police chief, told a television station, adding that the iron grills were old and rusty.

Two of the men were facing homicide charges and the five others were suspects in a series of thefts.

Macavinta said the lone guard made over four visits to the toilet and noticed the escape hours later.

Four prisoners stayed behind and were still asleep when the guard discovered the detention cells open, he added.

Macavinta said the guard was suspended and an investigation was being conducted. The man's superior, who was not at the police station at that time, was also replaced.

Jail breaks are common in overcrowded prisons in the Philippines.

REUTERS RN HT1625