Peru: A prisoner escapes after being replaced by his twin brother

A prisoner dramatically escaped from a Peruvian prison in an extraordinary way, exchanging his place with his visiting twin brother was captured recently after some months on the run.

The arrest of Alexander Jefferson Delgado Herrera marks the end of more than a year on the run.

He was serving a 16-year sentence for sexual abuse and armed robbery during the visit of his twin brother, Giancarlo, last January.

Alexander Delgado Herrera allegedly drugged Giancarlo and changed his clothes before leaving the prison, reported by the BBC.

Due to uncertainty about what really happened, Giancarlo was first investigated for helping his brother, but the prosecutors finally dropped the charges against him, reports the daily El País.

Last week an evolution was noted in the search for the fugitive.

“Today, there was the arrest of a former prisoner who fled Piedras Gordas on January 10, 2017, by being replaced by his brother,” said the Interior Ministry in a statement.

“This relative was detained in his place, but today Delgado Herrera is arrested.”

Authorities monitored Delgado Herrera for several months and located him in front of a building in the Callao seaside district, the ministry said. He tried to escape when he saw agents of the National Police of Peru but was quickly captured.

Delgado Herrera said he had devised a dramatic escape plan because he wanted to see his mother, reported Diario Correo, a local media outlet.

The Interior Ministry had offered a reward of 20,000 Peruvian Sol ($6,127) for information that would lead to his capture. He is apparently known as Vaporito.

The authorities had already been stunned by his escape. “It’s incredible, in 12 years, no one escaped from Ancon I,” said former Justice Minister Marisol Pérez Tello. Diario