Transcription of Breakout Post
Note: Owen love, I need a favour. A rather big one but it's for a good reason. Meet me and Charlie for drinks at the White Hart tomorrow at 8. B.
Daily Prophet article: "Broom Thief Leaves Behind Portee's Prizes" Six of the Prides’ reserve brooms were stolen last night in a bizarre break-in that has puzzled Quidditch officials.
Instead of touching any of the team’s Firebolt 2’s that were in the same locker, robbers took several of the brooms that the team keeps in reserve in case of emergencies.
“It’s just plain odd,” said the Prides’ general manager Hector Golde. “Why anyone’d take the old brooms but leave those beauties without touching them.”
The stolen brooms include a 1994 Cleansweep, which was the favourite broom of Chaser Owen Wood before this year’s team-wide transition to the Firebolts.
No evidence of forced entry was found, but having training practices open to the public makes it hard to pinpoint suspects, said an official working on the investigation.
Despite the break-in, the Prides will still be scrimmaging against the Harpies this Sunday at 2:00 at the Harpies’ home pitch.
Daily Prophet Front Page Story: Another Azkaban Break-Out! 13 Dangerous Prisoners on the Loose, Ministry has Few Leads By: Cindy Digby, Prophet Staff Writer
Once thought impregnable, Azkaban suffered another break-out last night when thirteen prisoners, including one convicted Death Eater, somehow managed to escape their cells without a trace. The prisoners are “extremely dangerous” according to Ministry officials and are “not opposed to using magic against innocents.” Their manner of escape is still unknown, though the Ministry has not yet ruled out the possibility of accomplices from the outside aiding in the attack.
Aurors have been combing the prison and surrounding area for clues, but so far only faint unidentified spell residues have been found. “There’s a good chance that the Dark Arts were used,” said one Auror on the investigation. “These people- they’d do anything to get out and get their revenge.” The escape was discovered early this morning, when guards performed their routine check on each of the prisoners. Though the guards walk the premises through the night, none reported any disturbances in the hallways, and no one from the sentry posts witnessed anything unusual last night.
A shoe is the only hope the Ministry has for piecing together what happened last night. It washed up on the Scottish shore this morning and is identical to those given to inmates at the prison. Aurors said this is evidence that at least some of the prisoners braved the high winds and rough waves of the Scottish October weather and made it safely to shore.
Aurors have begun combing the mainland area close to the prison and have alerted Muggles to be on guard for dangerous inmates loose from a local “insane asylum” that may be carrying weapons. The prisoners were being held on a variety of charges, ranging from murder to defrauding the wizarding public with use of stolen magic. Augustus Rookwood, the notorious Death Eater spy from within the Ministry, is among the convicts. It may well be that he coordinated the escape, having already escaped once before.
Recent years have brought on a slew of escapes that have rattled the Ministry and kept citizens up late with worry. Sirius Black, the deranged follower of the Dark Lord, was the first to make it out, and though a major man-hunt was deployed, he was never recovered. The following year, several Death Eaters, including Rookwood, were broken out at once. A feature on this worrying trend will appear in Sunday’s edition of the Prophet.
Ministry officials urge everyone to use “extreme caution” when faced with anything suspicious until the criminals are recovered. They are volatile and dangerous and by now they may have acquired wands. A sizable reward is offered to anyone with information on the convicts, and any sightings should be reported to the Ministry straight away.
For a history and photo of each prisoner, turn to page 3 and learn how to protect your family from dangerous predators!