• Two prisoners escaped from a Dijon jail by sawing through cell bars and using bedsheets.
• The escape highlights severe overcrowding problems in French prisons.
• The incident follows another jailbreak in Rennes just ten days prior.
• Prison staff unions criticize the government's focus on high-security facilities over regular jails.
• Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin has fired the director of the prison following these incidents.

In a recent escape from a jail in Dijon, France, two prisoners managed to saw through the bars of their cell and flee using bed sheets, according to Le Monde. The escape occurred overnight, and guards discovered the break just before dawn. The inmates include a 19-year-old man awaiting trial for attempted murder linked to drug offenses and a 32-year-old man serving time for threats and violence against a partner, as confirmed by Dijon prosecutor Olivier Caracotch.

This escape is particularly concerning given that it follows another incident that occurred ten days earlier in Rennes. In that case, a 37-year-old convict evaded custody during a supervised outing to a planetarium. Following the Dijon and Rennes jailbreaks, Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin responded by firing the director of the Dijon prison, reflecting a growing alarm over security measures within French correctional facilities, according to CBS News and SCMP.

The event has exacerbated ongoing discussions about the overcrowding crisis in French prisons, which have been reported as having some of the worst conditions in Europe. According to a July report from the Council of Europe, France ranks third in prison overcrowding, with a staggering average of 135 inmates per 100 available spaces. Union representatives have warned of these risks, citing deteriorating conditions at Dijon prison, where 311 inmates are crammed into a facility designed for only 180, according to Le Monde, CBS News, and SCMP.

Union official Ahmed Saih indicated that the inmates utilized "old-fashioned, manual saw blades" to facilitate their escape and stated that prison staff had been voicing concerns about potential jailbreaks for months. He emphasized the need for better security measures to prevent such incidents, including "gratings that cannot be sawn through," highlighting the neglect faced by regular prisons that are overshadowed by the government's focus on high-security facilities for serious offenders, as asserted by CBS News and SCMP.