Terror suspect escaped via bathroom window

An unsecured bathroom window and complacent guards allowed a top terror suspect to flee a high-security prison in February, Singapore's deputy prime minister said yesterday.

In announcing the results of a probe into the embarrassing escape, Deputy Prime Minister Wong Kan Seng said Mas Selamat Kastari, who allegedly once plotted to hijack an airplane and crash it into the city-state's international airport, had planned his Feb 27 escape over time.

Speaking in Parliament, Wong said Mas Selamat climbed out of a ventilation window of a toilet cubicle before a scheduled weekly visit with his family. The window did not have a grill on it, Wong said.