CON SAYS HE TRADED COKE FOR FREEDOM

Probe Launched Into Biker'S Claim That Guard Aided Escape

KITCHENER - A man described by police as a vicious criminal claims he
bribed a guard with cocaine to help him break out of the Guelph
Correctional Centre last month.

Carl Bursey, 25, detailed the allegation in an interview at the
Waterloo Detention Centre in Cambridge, where he's being held until
court Feb. 11.

``The truth is, me and an officer had a talk,'' he said. ``He agreed
to leave a secure door open - door 218 - if I gave him two ounces of
cocaine.

``Without this door being left open, it's impossible to escape from
that jail. If you get out that door, that's your freedom.''

Both Guelph police and the OPP are investigating Bursey's escape,
including his allegation of bribery.

``I can't take anything he says without checking and rechecking it
thoroughly,'' said Sergeant Russell Malcolmson of Guelph police.

Ross Virgo, a spokesperson for the provincial ministry of correctional
services, confirmed the investigation, as did Paul Hughes, president
of the union representing jail guards, who added there haven't been
any suspensions or other disciplinary actions.

``Right off the top, I'd be highly suspicious of this,'' Virgo said.
``It's just a matter of credibility now.''

Bursey spent three weeks on the lam after escaping from the
medium-security Guelph facility on Jan. 2.

His lengthy record includes convictions for assault, assault causing
bodily harm, escaping custody, uttering death threats, dangerous
operation of a motor vehicle and possession of a prohibited weapon.

Bursey admitted an affiliation with the Rock Machine, a notorious
Quebec biker gang, and was in jail after getting caught with more than
$700,000 worth of stolen Harley Davidsons, among other offences.

He was eventually arrested Jan. 24 after a tip led police to an
apartment in Galt.

Bursey has been charged with escaping custody and breaking out of a
prison.

Bursey said he was approached by a guard about buying cocaine on Jan.
2.

Within hours, he said, they had agreed the guard would leave a solid
steel door in a garbage room open if Bursey set him up to get two
ounces of cocaine from a friend on the outside.

Bursey, who says he arranged the drug deal by phone, said he then
collected some trash and asked to be taken to the garbage room about 6
p.m.

Once inside the small room, he said, he went through the unlocked
door, closed it behind him and reached a loading dock area.

There, according to instructions the guard had given him, Bursey said,
he lifted a corner of a rolling, garage-type door enough to slide
under and escape.

An admitted alcoholic, he drank beer in Niagara Falls the night of his
escape, then partied for 12 days in Montreal.

``I had a good time while it lasted, but now I have to face the
consequences,'' said Bursey.

After his capture, he said, police immediately began interrogating him
about an accomplice. Bursey said he told them about the
cocaine-for-freedom deal, but hasn't named the guard who helped him.

Hughes, president of Local 233 of the Ontario Public Service Employees
Union, agreed with Bursey that the door in question is extremely
secure and must have been open for him to escape.

On the other hand, said Hughes, it could just have been a simple
error.

``If it was a mistake, it was a major mistake,'' he said. ``No doubt
there will be some sanction even if it comes out as an oversight.''