Prisoner digs 230ft escape tunnel from cell toilet, but suffocates to death with just feet to go

A murderer suffocated just metres from escaping jail after digging a 230-foot-long tunnel from his cell toilet to freedom.

Judson Cunha Evangelista, 26, is believed to have died from a lack of oxygen as he carved the tunnel, which had already passed under the perimeter wall of the maximum security jail in Boa Vista, Brazil.


The escape route was discovered by cops, yesterday, after the convicted murderer managed to make it back to his cell after becoming ill inside the hole, but died soon after.

Shocked officers discovered a hole which began underneath the toilet in Evangelista’s cell in Wing 7 of the Monte Cristo penitentiary.

The dirt tunnel continued for 230 feet underneath the prison and had already passed under its heavily-fortified outer walls and electric fences, according to prison authorities.

The tunnel is believed to have taken months to excavate and was reportedly just a few metres away from reaching the surface in surrounding forest outside.

Officers found several bags of dirt and an electric cable which ran the length of the tunnel, with a light bulb on the end.

It is believed the prisoner was planning to charge other inmates to use the tunnel in a mass escape bid. The tunnel has now been filled with concrete, a spokesman said.