THE Department of Justice is considering buying prison vans with cells inside after the escape of a prisoner on Sunday.
Gardai were still searching yesterday for Michael Cahill who threatened prison officers with a syringe before escaping while being transferred from Dublin to Cork.
British and US police forces use specially modified vans with cell units inside for the transport of dangerous prisoners. Department of Justice officials are considering buying two such vehicles.
The Prison Officers Association has suggested a number of measures, including shackling prisoners' wrists to waistbands, and arming officers with CS gas or "pepper gas" canisters.
Cahill, regarded as a low-security prisoner, had one wrist handcuffed to a prison officer when he produced a syringe and held it to the officer's head. There were two other prison officers in the van, and a garda driver. He forced them to release the handcuffs, jumped from the van, and ran off across fields.