A TOTAL OF 128 people are at large from Ireland’s open prisons according to figures released to RTÉ under the Freedom of Information Act.
The figures from the Irish Prison Service show that 103 people are recorded as unlawfully at large from Loughan House and 25 from Shelton Abbey.
50 of the prisoners are at large for reasons other than escaping from the centres, usually by failing to comply with conditions of their temporary release and 78 escaped or absconded.
Of the 128 prisoners, 23 of them were sentenced after motoring offences and 33 were imprisoned for robbery or theft. 20 people have been recorded as at large since the start of last year while some prisoners have been at large for over ten years.
The department said experience has shown that the vast majority of offenders who abscond return or are returned to custody within a short frametime.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
have your say