The diamond cutter jailbreak: Echoes of Alcatraz as police hunt two escaped prisoners - including a thug stabbed a stranger 25 times - who left dummies in their cell beds and cut their way out with a specialist tool 'supplied by a drone' 

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Two prisoners who are on the run after breaking out of HMP Pentonville using diamond cutters have been named as an attempted murderer and a man facing a burglary charge.

James Anthony Whitlock, 31, and Matthew Baker, 28, escaped the north London prison in an audacious Alcatraz-style break out after leaving mannequins in their beds in a bid to avoid detection. 

Baker had been awaiting sentencing after he was found guilty of attempted murder two weeks ago for stabbing a man in Dagenham, east London. Whitlock was on remand having been charged with conspiracy to burgle over 19 alleged ATM thefts.

Scotland Yard warned members of the public not to approach the escapees as they 'could become violent'. 

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On the run: James Anthony Whitlock, left, and Matthew Baker, right, used diamond cutters to break out of their cell in HMP Prison, north London, leaving mannequins to trick guards

It is strongly believed drones were used to fly cutting equipment into the north London prison, which the inmates used to slice through bars on a window. At about 10.40pm on Sunday, they clambered from their fifth-floor cell in G wing on to the roof of the jail’s chapel, then jumped on to the 20ft high perimeter wall.

From there they used bed sheets to drop to the pavement. It is understood a getaway car was waiting for them in the street.

The inmates had folded pillows and piles of clothing to fool staff into believing they were asleep. The ruse had echoes of the notorious 1962 escape from Alcatraz, where US inmates made papier mache dummies to act as decoys.

Baker and Whitlock were not found to be missing until about 11.45am. 

It is understood that because they were not assigned to a work programme, they were not expected to leave their cell until lunchtime. 

A Prison Service investigation into the breakout will focus on exactly how the machinery was smuggled behind bars, why staff did not hear the sound of the drill and whether the men had any help. 

A former inmate who was released from Pentonville just hours after the escape said he was several doors down from the escapees.

He said: 'They did it from the fifth floor, they were both in the same cell.'

A prison source claims the men used diamond-tipped cutting equipment to break the bars of the cell they shared before scaling the perimeter wall at HMP Pentonville, pictured today 

ECHOES OF ALCATRAZ: WAS ESCAPE FROM PENTONVILLE INSPIRED BY INMATES' INFAMOUS 1962 PRISON BREAK?

The bid by Whitlock and Baker has echoes of the notorious Alcatraz prison break. 

Brothers John and Clarence Anglin and fellow inmate Frank Morris escaped the island prison, off the coast of San Francisco, California, on a makeshift raft in June 1962 and were never seen again. 

The Anglins and Morris' incredible escape saw them chisel vent duct openings in their cells with spoons until they were wide enough to fit through.

Brothers John and Clarence Anglin and fellow inmate Frank Morris escaped Alcatraz prison, pictured, off the coast of San Francisco, California, on a makeshift raft in June 1962

Before leaving their cells, they left paper-mache heads with their own hair attached in their beds to make it appear like they were tucked up in bed. 

They clambered through the vents, broke onto the roof of the jail and made their makeshift raft out of raincoats, which they then inflated using an accordion-like concertina.

The men set sail from the north-eastern shore of Alcatraz and were never seen again. 

The audacious bid has echoes of the notorious 1962 Alcatraz prison break, when escaped US inmates created mannequin heads out of paper, paint and hai and left them in their beds

The escape was made into the 1979 film Escape From Alcatraz, starring Clint Eastwood. Above, a prison guard discovers the mannequins in a scene from the film

The raft was found on the San Francisco coast the next day.

Alcatraz officials and the FBI insisted that the men drowned, with the investigation closed in 1979. They say no one has ever successfully fled from the notorious jail.  

The escape was made into the 1979 film Escape From Alcatraz, starring Clint Eastwood.

Whitlock is described as a white man of slim build. He has the word 'Tracy' tattooed on his torso. Baker is described as a white man with ginger hair. 

It is not known what clothing either had at the time of the escape.  

Reports indicate the men were being held on G wing, where prisoner Jamal Mahmoud, 21, was fatally stabbed last month.

The killing of the young father prompted calls for an inquiry into the state of prisons in England and Wales, with his family accusing the jail of 'neglecting him'.

Following the escape today a Prison Service spokesman said: 'Public protection is our top priority and we take escapes from custody extremely seriously. We are working closely with the police and are urgently investigating the matter.'

Dave Todd, the Prison Officers Association representative for London and Kent, confirmed that the inmates had escaped using diamond-tipped cutting tools.

He said: 'The prisoners used a cutting tool to cut through the bars, possibly a wire, before they escaped over the wall.

'The mannequins were probably made from everyday items that they have access to, like clothes or papier mache.

'We don't know at this point if they had outside help, but that will come out in the investigation.'

Mr Todd blamed the escapes on staff shortages, low morale and insecure yards in the 1300-capacity prison. 

A male visitor, who also wished to remain anonymous, said he was told the escapees folded bed sheets in the shape of bodies to trick prison guards. Pictured, HMP Pentonville 

Escapes from within prisons have become increasingly rare with only two recorded in 2015/16, according to the latest Ministry of Justice figures

Andrew Neilson, Director of Campaigns at the Howard League for Penal Reform, blasted the prison service and blamed the breakout on 'chronic overcrowding and staff shortages'.

He said: 'Less than a month after a man was killed in Pentonville, this escape is more shocking evidence of a prison that is out of control. 

It comes less than a month after Somalian-born gang member Jamal Mahmoud, 21, died after being stabbed at the 174-year-old prison in an attack which left two others injured.

Andrew Neilson, of the Howard League for Penal Reform, blasted the Prison Service and blamed the breakout on ‘chronic overcrowding and staff shortages’. He added: ‘Less than a month after a man was killed in Pentonville, this escape is more shocking evidence of a prison that is out of control.’

HMP Pentonville, which opened in 1842, has regularly been criticised for its low standards.

The category B prison was last year singled out by then justice secretary Michael Gove as ‘the most dramatic example of failure’ in the prison estate. A report by the chief inspector of prisons said the jail, which is supposed to hold 900 inmates but houses 1,300, had blood-stained walls, piles of rubbish and food waste, and spiralling violence and drug abuse.

The overcrowding and a shortage of prison officers means ‘temporary regimes’ are set up in which inmates are confined to their cells so that safe staff-prisoner ratios can be met.

Camilla Poulton, chairman of HMP Pentonville’s independent inspection watchdog, said: ‘It will remain a soft target for contraband and other security breaches as long as its dilapidated windows are in place, notwithstanding the efforts of management and staff.’

CATALOGUE OF PROBLEMS AT HMP PENTONVILLE

Young father killed in G wing 

On October 18 police launched a 'murder' investigation after new father Jamal Mahmoud, 21, was killed at G wing of HMP Pentonville.  

Two other inmates were also injured during that incident. 

Following the attack about half of the 200 prison officers passed a vote of no confidence in Pentonville governor Kevin Reilly.

Pictures, released in July 2016, show the conditions inside HMP Pentonville uncovered during an inspection. Above, a filthy shower block inside one of the wings

Drones used to smuggle items to inmates 

In August police seized two drones loaded with drugs and contraband mobile phones being flown towards the prison.

Officers saw a man acting suspiciously near the jail, who fled from the scene and left two bags of class B drugs and two mobiles phones behind him.

The following day, officers recovered a drone after tracking it flying over the prison before it crashed. 

They were later alerted to another drone being flown towards the prison.

It was stopped mid-flight and was found to be carrying a package containing a large quantity of drugs and mobile phones. 

Piles of rubbish lie outside one prison wall in this photograph released in July 2016

Convicted murderer goes on the run

In 2012 a convicted murderer escaped Pentonville and went on the run for 48 hours before being arrested near his dying mother's care home.

John Massey, 64, used a makeshift rope to scale the walls of the Victorian-built jail.

But after two days in hiding, Scotland Yard said Massey was arrested in Faversham, Kent, not far from his 86-year-old mother May's care home.

Massey was sentenced to life in 1976 for shooting bouncer Charlie Higgins, 36, with a sawn-off shotgun after being thrown out of an East London pub for fighting.

He was also convicted of attempting to shoot a policeman dead after being chased in his Aston Martin getaway car.

An Old Bailey judge jailed the carpenter for a minimum of 20 years but he became one of the country's longest serving prisoners because of his repeated escapes.

Scraps of paper and bits of rubbish lie scattered across what appears to be a medical room

Criticised by the Government

The prison was last year singled out by former justice secretary Michael Gove as 'the most dramatic example of failure' within the estate. 

A report released in June 2015 found that Pentonville was deteriorating and found that many inmates were left without basic provisions, including pillows and utensils, that there were 'mounds of rubbish' on the floors and cockroach infestations.

Last week Justice Secretary Liz Truss unveiled a package of measures aimed at reforming prisons after the slew of warnings about violence and safety behind bars.

The strategy includes a recruitment drive to add 2,500 new officers to the frontline and 'no fly zones' to stop drones dropping drugs and other contraband into prisons. 

Prisoner is airlifted to hospital with chest and stomach injuries following a serious assault in a Kent prison 

By Keiligh Baker for MailOnline 

A prisoner has been flown to hospital following a serious assault at a Kent prison.

The victim suffered chest and stomach injuries in the attack at HMP Swaleside in Eastchurch on the Isle of Sheppey.

Emergency crews including paramedics and the air ambulance were called to the site, with the helicopter landing outside the prison.

The patient was then flown to King's College Hospital in London for further treatment. The incident happened at around 9.30am on Saturday, but details have only just emerged.

It is not known how the prisoner was hurt, with Kent Police saying this is 'still under investigation'.

An ambulance service spokesman said: 'We can confirm that SECAmb attended, along with the air ambulance, HMP Swaleside, following reports of an assault shortly before 9.30am.'

A Kent Police spokesman added: 'Kent Police is investigating a reported assault at a prison on the Isle of Sheppey.

'It is alleged that between around 9am and 10am on Saturday 6 November 2016, a prisoner suffered serious injuries following an assault. He was taken to a London hospital by air ambulance where his injuries are described as non-life threatening.

'Inquiries are on-going into the circumstances of the incident.'