Maze Prison escape attempting to escape from Long Kesh. The escapees included Larry Marley, who would later be one of the masterminds behind the 1983 escape. (Marley was shot dead by loyalists in 1987.) On 10 June 1981, eight IRA members on remand, including Angelo Fusco, Paul Magee and Joe Doherty, escaped from Crumlin Road Jail. The prisoners took prison officers hostage using three handguns that had been smuggled into the prison, took their uniforms and shot their way out of the prison. HM Prison Maze was considered one of the most escape-proof prisons in Europe. In addition to fences, each H-Block was
Mountjoy Prison helicopter escape observed already, as other Ministers are wont to use State cars. The IRA released a statement on the escape, which read, "Three republican prisoners were rescued by a special unit from Mountjoy Prison on Wednesday. The operation was a complete success and the men are now safe, despite a massive hunt by Free State forces". Shortly after the escape Twomey gave an exclusive interview to German magazine "Der Spiegel", where the reporter said people throughout Europe were joking about the incident as "the escape of the century". Irish rebel band the Wolfe Tones wrote a song celebrating the escape called