Séamus McElwaine judge describing him as a "dangerous killer" and recommending he spend at least 30 years in prison. On 25 September 1983, McElwaine was involved in the Maze Prison escape, the largest break-out of prisoners in Europe since World War II and in British prison history. 38 republican prisoners, armed with 6 handguns, hijacked a prison meals lorry and smashed their way out of the Maze prison. After the escape he joined an IRA Active Service Unit operating in the area of the border between Counties Monaghan and Fermanagh. The unit targeted police and military patrols with gun and bomb attacks,
Comayagua prison fire being housed for serious crimes, such as murder and armed robbery. Around 475 prisoners escaped from the fire, many through the roof of the facility. Several prisoners jumped over the walls of the prison to escape the fire, but were reportedly shot at by prison guards. According to firefighters, around 100 inmates burned to death or suffocated in their cells as the keys to release them could not be located. Around 30 prisoners were transported to the capital to receive specialist treatment for severe burns. Paola Castro, the local governor, claimed that she called the Red Cross and the firefighters,