海角大神

A聽helicopter聽swooped down on a聽prison聽courtyard Sunday as armed men on board fired on guards and lowered a rope to help a convicted killer make his fourth attempt to聽escape聽from a Greekprison.

But the plot was foiled after the聽prisoner聽was shot and the chopper forced to land in the聽prison's聽parking lot.

The dramatic聽escape聽attempt was one of a handful involving聽helicopters聽in聽Greece, and the first time such plans have failed.

Authorities said the chartered聽helicopter聽鈥� carrying two armed passengers, a pilot and a technician 鈥� first tried to rip off the chicken-wire fence surrounding Trikala聽prison聽with a hook dangling from a rope. But that didn't work, so a rope was lowered down to whisk away Panagiotis Vlastos. Another聽prisoner, an unnamed Albanian national also in the courtyard at the time, may also have been part of the聽escape聽plan.

At the same time, the armed passengers used AK-47 assault rifles to fire on the聽prison聽guards. One guard, who was inside a post, was slightly injured by shards of flying glass. He and others returned fire, injuring Vlastos, who had managed to climb into the聽helicopter, as well as the聽helicopter's聽technician. Vlastos fell from a height of about 3 meters (10 feet) into the courtyard, and the聽helicopter聽was eventually grounded in the parking lot.

Vlastos, 43, is a convicted murderer and racketeer serving a life term who had tried and failed three times before to聽escape聽from聽prison.

Prison聽officials told TV stations Mega and NET that they recovered well over 500 bullets fired from thehelicopter. The Ministry of Justice, in statements describing the聽escape聽attempt, added that the聽helicopterpassengers also carried, but did not use, "improvised explosive devices."

Authorities said Vlastos was wounded in the legs but is being treated in the聽prison聽hospital because his injuries were not deemed serious enough for a transfer elsewhere. The technician's hand was slightly wounded.

It was not immediately clear if the pilot and flight technician had willingly participated in the聽escape聽attempt or had been forced to fly to the聽prison, which is located 328 km (205 miles) northwest of Athens. Also unclear was whether the second would-be escapee was in on the scheme or just happened to be in the courtyard and tried to take advantage of the situation.

The聽helicopter聽was hired from a western Athens suburb and was supposed to fly to Thessaloniki, in northernGreece. But it deviated from is flight path to head to the聽prison.

This is the third time a聽helicopter聽has been used in an attempted聽prison聽escape聽in聽Greece. Convicted criminals Vassilis Paleokostas and Alket Rizaj were whisked by聽helicopter聽from the high-security Korydallos聽prison聽in Athens in June 2006. They were caught, but聽escaped聽for a second time 鈥� again using a聽helicopter聽鈥� in February 2009. Paleokostas is still at large.

Vlastos was first arrested in 1994 in the murder of two members of a rival criminal gang. He was convicted last year as the behind-the-bars mastermind of the kidnapping of shipping tycoon Pericles Panagopoulos. Panagopoulos was kidnapped in January 2009 and released after eight days, when a ransom of 鈧�30 million was paid.

While awaiting trial for the kidnapping, Vlastos tried to聽escape聽in December 2011 from Korydallos聽prison聽along with three members of armed anarchist group Conspiracy Nuclei of Fire. The four used a pistol and knives to take hostage three聽prison聽guards and 25 visiting relatives of other聽prisoners. The four surrendered to authorities after a five-hour standoff.

Vlastos had also tried to聽escape, unsuccessfully, in 1994 and 1998.