TWO MEN CLAIM THEIR UNCLES ESCAPED FROM ALCATRAZ

It has gone down in history as the ultimate fortress: a rock in the middle of San Francisco Bay, from which no one could escape and live to tell the tale.

But now, more than 50 years since three inmates escaped from Alcatraz and the gates of the prison finally swung shut, that reputation is being called into question. Two brothers whose uncles broke out of the prison in 1962 believe the men did make it off The Rock and are still alive, in their 80s, living in Brazil.

Bank robbers John and Clarence Anglin were thought to have perished at sea along with their fellow escapee Frank Morris.

A total of 36 people have attempted to break out of the prison, although none is thought to have succeeded. But Ken and David Widner, who are co-operating with authorities for the first time, believe their uncles did survive. Speaking to a television documentary, the pair say that for three years after their escape, John and Clarence’s mother received a Christmas card, signed by her sons.

The handwriting was analyzed and believed to be theirs — although the date of the cards could never be proven. They also have evidence that they were alive during the Seventies and could be living in South America. The Anglin family say they sat on those leads for years because, they say, they were spied on and harassed by the FBI. But a desire to see the case solved before Marie Anglin Widner — the Widners’ mother and the escapees’ sister — passed away, inspired them to come forward.