Arrested after 22 years on the run from prison.

(Baonghean.vn) - 22 years after escaping from detention, Phan Thanh Lan (born in 1956), from Dien An commune (Dien Chau district), was arrested by the Criminal Fugitive Apprehension Department (PC52) of the Nghe An Provincial Police under a special arrest warrant.

On December 25th, Colonel Le Viet Ha, Deputy Head of PC52 Department (Provincial Police), stated that Phan Thanh Lan (born in 1956), from Dien An commune, Dien Chau district, had been extradited from the South to Nghe An for investigation.

According to records, in 1993, Phan Thanh Lan committed theft and was imprisoned at the Nghe An Provincial Police Detention Center. In the same cell as Lan were Nguyen Sy Hai, Hoang Trong Tan, Tran Xuan Lenh, and Dao Van Duc. In the cell, Phan Thanh Lan conspired with these inmates to escape. When some disagreed, Lan threatened them, saying, "With an 18-year sentence like yours, when will you ever get out of prison?" After being intimidated and coerced by Lan, the inmates followed her instructions and dug through the wall to escape.

The subject is Phan Thanh Lan.

At 5 PM on December 9, 1993, after the prison officers had locked the cells and gone to rest, Lan, Hai, and Tan took turns using barbed wire and broken glass to probe the soft wall section to bore through. At the same time, Lan assigned Hai to tap rhythmically on the wooden floor and sing to avoid detection by the surrounding cells, while Lenh braided mosquito nets and clothes together to make a rope.

After digging through the wall, five inmates escaped from the prison and climbed over the fence. Among the escapees was a particularly dangerous individual: Nguyen Sy Hai used a K54 pistol to seriously injure someone.

This was an organized prison escape. Many of the escapees were eventually apprehended. However, Phan Thanh Lan remained missing. Later, Lan changed his name to Phan Thanh Phượng, born in 1958, and moved with his wife and children to Ninh Xuân commune, Ninh Hòa town (Khánh Hòa province).

Phan Thanh Lan (wearing a white crop top, third from the right). Photo: Provided by the police.

Over a month ago, after receiving intelligence, the PC52 Department launched a special operation codenamed 125T to focus its efforts on arresting Phan Thanh Lan. Through verification, investigators determined that Phan Thanh Phuong, born in 1958, residing in Ninh Xuan commune, Ninh Hoa town, Khanh Hoa province, was indeed Phan Thanh Lan (born in 1956), from Dien An commune, Dien Chau district, who escaped from detention in 1993.

To strengthen the case file, on December 18, 2015, Phan Thanh Phuong (also known as Phan Thanh Lan) was arrested at her home in Ninh Xuan commune, Ninh Hoa town (Khanh Hoa province).

When Phan Thanh Lan was arrested, many people in the area were stunned because they had no idea that Lan was a criminal all this time.

Phuong Nguyen