Warders foil jail escape attempt

Warders found a makeshift rope made of knotted sheets

An inmate's bid for freedom was foiled when warders heard him burrowing through the stone walls of the jail, Exeter Crown Court has been told.

Daniel Vail, 25, dug a 3ft by 2ft (91cm by 61cm) hole in the wall behind his upper bunk in HMP Exeter, Devon.

He hid debris in cupboards and covered the hole with his bedding and cardboard when he was not working on it.

Vail was wearing two sets of clothes when he was caught. He denies attempting to escape in April 2007.

'Elaborate stunt'

A warder heard thumping and scraping sounds as she patrolled the prison yard in the early hours, the court was told.

When she and fellow officers traced the noise it led to Vail's cell.

Vail, who is currently in jail at Bristol, claims the hole was an elaborate stunt designed to force a move to a different prison.

Mr Richard Crabb, prosecuting, said: "The issue is whether he made the hole to draw attention to his grievances or to escape.

"The prosecution say because he was doing it late at night, because the hole was partly hidden by his bed, because he had knotted sheets to make a makeshift rope and arranged his bunk to look as if he was sleeping in it and was wearing two layers of clothing, it was his intention to escape."

The trial continues.