TWO of three juveniles who escaped from the New Opportunity Corps (NOC), Onderneeming, Essequibo Coast on Monday have been recaptured, Commander Stephen Mansell has confirmed.

Reports indicate that the escapees assaulted one of the guards attached to the institution and escaped from the compound. Police from the division are combing several areas for the third juvenile.

Reports also indicate that during the period, the juveniles were blamed for several burglaries within multiple communities on the coast.

One of the escapees is currently before the court for a capital offence. In February last, two other juveniles escaped from the NOC.

The NOC is one of Guyana’s better known juvenile correctional and rehabilitative institutions. While detained there, the juveniles who commit various infractions are trained in different skilled areas.

Former UNICEF country representative, Marianne Flach, had expressed concerns over the large number of juveniles (75 per cent), who were in the institution for wandering.

UNICEF has consistently argued that preventing contact with the law is a crucial element of a juvenile justice policy.