guards began to take far less interest in him and the three could begin to plot an escape in earnest.
They were all now painfully familiar with the day-to-day routine of the prison. But this was actually a tremendous advantage. The three were able to predict almost exactly what their guards would be doing at any particular time of day. They also knew when they were least likely to be disturbed. The guardsâ meal times, for example, were quiet times when they could almost guarantee they would not be visited. What they also found out was that after 4:30pm in the afternoon, when all the prisoners were locked in the cells for the night, only one guard remained in the prison, in a little office on the ground floor. There was also a guard on a glass-covered catwalk over the courtyard outside the prison, and another who stood outside the main exit, but he did not come on duty until 6:00pm at night.
There seemed to be two options when it came to escape. The first was relatively simple. They could break out of their cell windows, sprint through the prison yard, and climb the 6m (20ft) fence that encircled the prison perimeter. Simple it may have been, but there was also a very high risk of injury or death. For a start, a fierce dog patrolled the yard, trained to sink its teeth into any escaper.
Prisoners were allowed in the yard at certain times of the day, and Jenkin and Moumbaris tried out a few diversionary tactics. Several dogs were used on a weekly rota, and although some of them were prepared to take food from the men, others growled menacingly at even the choicest tidbits.
But there was also another problem with this plan â the armed guard on the catwalk above the yard, which was lit by fiercely bright searchlights during the night. Perhaps they could arrange a distraction to lure him away, but the more they thought about it, the less they felt the simple option was going to work.
So the three turned their thoughts to a more complicated escape. That meant going out the way they had come in. Jenkinâs heart sank at the complexity of the task before them. It would take ages to fathom out a way to get past ten locked doors.
Whatever they did had to be fool-proof, as they would only get one chance. If they were caught, providing they werenât killed in the attempt, years would be added to their sentences, and they would be watched much more closely. They might even be transferred to much rougher prisons.
How a lock works
So the three prisoners set about working out how to get through each prison door one at a time, and what better place to start than their own cell doors? Jenkin noted the size of the keyhole and made a painstaking measurement of the shape of the âtumblersâ inside, which worked the lock mechanism (see diagram above).
Jenkin worked out the size and shape of the underside of the tumblers by making an impression with a knife, on a blank sheet of paper that he carefully inserted through the keyhole.
There was a workshop in the prison, where inmates spent some of their day making furniture. This gave the three escapers a golden opportunity. They had access to materials to make their keys and the tools to make them too. Even better, the guard who was usually on duty at the workshop was so sleepy and sluggish that Jenkin used to think his brain only flickered to life when he sucked on his pipe.
Gradually, through trial and error, Jenkin managed to construct his first key. First he made the basic shape in the prison workshop, then continued to carve the all important cuts in the âbitâ in his cell, with a file he had stolen from the workshop. When the key was finished he made a wonderful discovery â the same key could open every cell door on the corridor.
The keys that would unlock the other doors were all around them. They jangled from the guardsâ belts and jingled in the guardsâ hands. Jenkin thought their guards deliberately made as much noise as possible
They were all now painfully familiar with the day-to-day routine of the prison. But this was actually a tremendous advantage. The three were able to predict almost exactly what their guards would be doing at any particular time of day. They also knew when they were least likely to be disturbed. The guardsâ meal times, for example, were quiet times when they could almost guarantee they would not be visited. What they also found out was that after 4:30pm in the afternoon, when all the prisoners were locked in the cells for the night, only one guard remained in the prison, in a little office on the ground floor. There was also a guard on a glass-covered catwalk over the courtyard outside the prison, and another who stood outside the main exit, but he did not come on duty until 6:00pm at night.
There seemed to be two options when it came to escape. The first was relatively simple. They could break out of their cell windows, sprint through the prison yard, and climb the 6m (20ft) fence that encircled the prison perimeter. Simple it may have been, but there was also a very high risk of injury or death. For a start, a fierce dog patrolled the yard, trained to sink its teeth into any escaper.
Prisoners were allowed in the yard at certain times of the day, and Jenkin and Moumbaris tried out a few diversionary tactics. Several dogs were used on a weekly rota, and although some of them were prepared to take food from the men, others growled menacingly at even the choicest tidbits.
But there was also another problem with this plan â the armed guard on the catwalk above the yard, which was lit by fiercely bright searchlights during the night. Perhaps they could arrange a distraction to lure him away, but the more they thought about it, the less they felt the simple option was going to work.
So the three turned their thoughts to a more complicated escape. That meant going out the way they had come in. Jenkinâs heart sank at the complexity of the task before them. It would take ages to fathom out a way to get past ten locked doors.
Whatever they did had to be fool-proof, as they would only get one chance. If they were caught, providing they werenât killed in the attempt, years would be added to their sentences, and they would be watched much more closely. They might even be transferred to much rougher prisons.
How a lock works
So the three prisoners set about working out how to get through each prison door one at a time, and what better place to start than their own cell doors? Jenkin noted the size of the keyhole and made a painstaking measurement of the shape of the âtumblersâ inside, which worked the lock mechanism (see diagram above).
Jenkin worked out the size and shape of the underside of the tumblers by making an impression with a knife, on a blank sheet of paper that he carefully inserted through the keyhole.
There was a workshop in the prison, where inmates spent some of their day making furniture. This gave the three escapers a golden opportunity. They had access to materials to make their keys and the tools to make them too. Even better, the guard who was usually on duty at the workshop was so sleepy and sluggish that Jenkin used to think his brain only flickered to life when he sucked on his pipe.
Gradually, through trial and error, Jenkin managed to construct his first key. First he made the basic shape in the prison workshop, then continued to carve the all important cuts in the âbitâ in his cell, with a file he had stolen from the workshop. When the key was finished he made a wonderful discovery â the same key could open every cell door on the corridor.
The keys that would unlock the other doors were all around them. They jangled from the guardsâ belts and jingled in the guardsâ hands. Jenkin thought their guards deliberately made as much noise as possible
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