Rape convict Jaishankar, arrested after he escaped from Bangalore prison
A serial rapist who had escaped from a Karnataka prison on Sunday, setting off an alert across two states and a massive manhunt, has been arrested.
Jaishankar, often referred to as 'psycho Shankar' for his history of torturing and raping women, escaped from the Bangalore Central prison wearing a police uniform. He had used a bamboo pole and bed-sheet to scale the walls of the prison in a stunt worthy of action films.
The 36-year-old convict was caught near Bomanahalli in the capital city. The police say he was lured into a trap with the help of his associates who had helped the police arrest him in 2011.
He was injured during the prison break, which also offered clues. Eleven cops were suspended after his escape.
Jaishankar is convicted in one of the nearly 20 cases of rape, kidnapping and theft against him, many of them in neighbouring Tamil Nadu.
Alarmed that the dreaded criminal was roaming free at a time rising crimes against women have outraged the nation, the state government had warned women against travelling alone or going to isolated places. They had also announced Rs 5 lakh as reward for any information that could help catch him.
He was known to carry a machete in a black handbag when he entrapped women, allegedly before raping and torturing them to death.
Among the cases against him in Tamil Nadu is the kidnapping, rape and murder of a policewoman in 2009. The body of the cop, Jayamani, was found a month later.