MOSCOW: Russian authorities announced a manhunt on Saturday after six convicts tunnelled their way out a correctional facility.
Four of the six fugitives have now been detained, while local law enforcement are in hot pursuit of the remaining two.
“I realize that the news may cause concern, but I ask you not to panic,” said Igor Artamonov, governor of the western Lipetsk region.
“Security forces are continuing efforts to track down and detain the criminals,” he added.
Prison guards were alerted to their disappearance after carrying out a routine inspection.
“In general regime penal colony No. 2, an underground tunnel was discovered during a patrol of the premises,” the prison service of the Lipetsk region said.
“Immediately a count of convicts got underway, which revealed the absence of six inmates,” it added.
It did not reveal their identities, but said in a statement the suspects were “from Central Asia.”
Four of the escapees were detained, two of whom were caught in the neighboring Tambov region, the local governor said.
“The search for the remaining two criminals continues,” he said.
The Lipetsk region is about 300 kilometers (190 miles) south of Moscow.
Russia has one of the highest prison populations in the world, totalling more than 400,000 people last year, but numbers have decreased as convicts are sent to fight in Ukraine.
Prison escapes are relatively rare in Russia and those who manage to break out are often quickly caught.
![]()
Manhunt in Russia after convicts tunnel out of jail
Short Url
https://arab.news/wpwea
Manhunt in Russia after convicts tunnel out of jail
- Four of the six fugitives have now been detained, while local law enforcement are in hot pursuit of the remaining two
- Prison guards were alerted to their disappearance after carrying out a routine inspection
Robotics build path from rural Kenya to world stage
LAIKIPIA: Jeremiah Kithinji had never touched a computer before he finished high school. A decade later, he is teaching robotics, and even took a team of rural Kenyans to the World Robotics Olympiad in Singapore.
In a classroom in Laikipia county — a sparsely populated grasslands region of northern Kenya known for its rhinos and cheetahs — pupils are busy snapping together wheels, motors and sensors to assemble a robot.
Guiding them is Kithinji, 27, who runs a string of robotics clubs in the area that have taken some of his pupils far beyond the rural landscapes outside.
In November, he took a team of three to Singapore for the Olympiad, where he also served as the competition’s first Kenyan judge. They presented a simulated space mission with a robot that could launch a model satellite and collect space debris.
Singapore was an eye-opening experience for Kithinji, who was educated in a modest rural school without access to computers.
“I felt this country is so advanced. Interacting with the people showed me how much they care about their nation, and it made me think about how I can instil the same mindset in my students,” he told AFP.
Kenya has pushed science and engineering in its latest curriculum, but lacks the resources for robotics training.
The clubs in Laikipia, which reach around 200 pupils, are funded by a US nonprofit, Science in a Suitcase, which helped train Kithinji and funded the trip to Singapore.
They have inspired Natalia Wangari, 14.
“In the future, when I become a neurosurgeon, I won’t have to perform every surgery myself. I can build a robot that acts as a doctor. I’ll just need to code it, and it will do the surgery itself,” she told AFP.
- Robots adapted to Kenya -
Kithinji hopes robotics can provide solutions to some of Kenya’s specific challenges.
He previously coached a team at the African Olympiad in South Africa in 2024, where they designed agricultural robots that can operate farming tools and irrigate fields, and sees particular benefits for rural hospitals — assisting in surgeries and delivering medication.
He dreams of more support and collaborators to expand his robotics program across the country.
For now, his pupils are focused on winning a place at the next Olympiad, in Puerto Rico, and they are brainstorming ideas for this year’s theme: robots meet culture.
But whatever happens, he is happy they are taking control of modern technology.
“The skills these kids are developing — critical thinking, problem-solving and technical skills... are the future skills our country needs,” he said.
“I want our kids to create the technology, not just consume it.”
In a classroom in Laikipia county — a sparsely populated grasslands region of northern Kenya known for its rhinos and cheetahs — pupils are busy snapping together wheels, motors and sensors to assemble a robot.
Guiding them is Kithinji, 27, who runs a string of robotics clubs in the area that have taken some of his pupils far beyond the rural landscapes outside.
In November, he took a team of three to Singapore for the Olympiad, where he also served as the competition’s first Kenyan judge. They presented a simulated space mission with a robot that could launch a model satellite and collect space debris.
Singapore was an eye-opening experience for Kithinji, who was educated in a modest rural school without access to computers.
“I felt this country is so advanced. Interacting with the people showed me how much they care about their nation, and it made me think about how I can instil the same mindset in my students,” he told AFP.
Kenya has pushed science and engineering in its latest curriculum, but lacks the resources for robotics training.
The clubs in Laikipia, which reach around 200 pupils, are funded by a US nonprofit, Science in a Suitcase, which helped train Kithinji and funded the trip to Singapore.
They have inspired Natalia Wangari, 14.
“In the future, when I become a neurosurgeon, I won’t have to perform every surgery myself. I can build a robot that acts as a doctor. I’ll just need to code it, and it will do the surgery itself,” she told AFP.
- Robots adapted to Kenya -
Kithinji hopes robotics can provide solutions to some of Kenya’s specific challenges.
He previously coached a team at the African Olympiad in South Africa in 2024, where they designed agricultural robots that can operate farming tools and irrigate fields, and sees particular benefits for rural hospitals — assisting in surgeries and delivering medication.
He dreams of more support and collaborators to expand his robotics program across the country.
For now, his pupils are focused on winning a place at the next Olympiad, in Puerto Rico, and they are brainstorming ideas for this year’s theme: robots meet culture.
But whatever happens, he is happy they are taking control of modern technology.
“The skills these kids are developing — critical thinking, problem-solving and technical skills... are the future skills our country needs,” he said.
“I want our kids to create the technology, not just consume it.”
Latest updates
© 2026 SAUDI RESEARCH & PUBLISHING COMPANY, All Rights Reserved And subject to Terms of Use Agreement.