This is the moment a suspected shooter gave two prison guards the slip and sparked an island-wide manhunt.
Alvone Maybury was being led out of Magistrates’ Court in handcuffs yesterday when he made a brazen dash for freedom across Hamilton.
He sprinted up Parliament Street with his hands cuffed in front of him as one of the prison guards gave chase.
Passersby looked on in stunned silence as the prisoner ran across Church Street, dodging cars. Mr. Maybury managed to outrun the prison officer and disappeared into the back of town.
Last night, the 24-year-old was still on the run from police.
He recently posted a Facebook status saying: “The weak get walked on, the soft get barked on, I never, never, ever runnin’.”
Mr. Maybury’s escape, at about 10:30am, sparked a major police operation to swing into action.
Dozens of officers descended on to the Court Street area and set up road blocks at busy junctions.
Police stopped cars to talk to drivers and looked inside trucks and vans in an attempt to find Mr. Maybury.
Detectives also blocked Princess Street with vehicles and searched homes in the nearby area.
Mr. Maybury, of Pembroke, had just appeared at Magistrates’ Court on firearms charges when he escaped.
He is accused of possessing a firearm, discharging a firearm and possessing ammunition between December 18 and 19 last year.
The charges relate to a shooting in Pembroke just before Christmas.
Mr. Maybury had not entered pleas to any of the charges as they can only be dealt with in the Supreme Court.
He was remanded in custody until July 27 moments before he was led away from court.
Lieutenant Colonel Edward Lamb, Commissioner of Corrections, told the Bermuda Sun that all prison officers were governed by a list of protocols on how to escort inmates into and out of court. Mr. Lambe said that, in line with standard procedure, two prison officers escorted Mr. Maybury from court.
He called on Mr. Maybury to “do the right thing” and hand himself in. He added: “These protocols have proven very effective over the years and history will bear true that his is a very rare occurrence for us.
“We immediately begun an internal investigation into the incident involving the escape from our custody of IMP Maybury.
“The findings and conclusions of that investigation will no doubt include recommendations on how we can prevent recurrences of this type of incident.
“In the meantime, in conjunction with the Bermuda Police Service, we are actively searching for IMP Maybury and in doing so, hasten to appeal to the public for assistance in apprehending him.”
Mr. Maybury was last seen wearing a grey sweatshirt and khaki pants. He is described as brown-skinned with braided hair.
Anyone with information should call 295-0011.
