Photo via Daily Mail

Melbourne inmate vanished without trace while carrying his brother's coffin 150 days ago - and cops are still hunting him

Read the original at Daily Mail ↗
Cite

Rae, M., & Stevens, K. (2026, September 22). Melbourne inmate vanished without trace while carrying his brother's coffin 150 days ago - and cops are still hunting him. Daily Mail. https://www.dailymail.com/news/article-16150093/rukaj-escape-melbourne-prisoner-funeral-cemetery-police.html?ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490&ito=1490

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

Daily Mail · collected 2026-09-22 · by Maisy Rae, Kylie Stevens

Quick Summary

Orijol Rukaj, a 47-year-old inmate accused of cocaine trafficking and connected to Albanian organized crime, escaped from authorities while attending his brother’s funeral at Keilor Cemetery in Melbourne on Anzac Day. Rukaj vanished without detection after the service despite being handcuffed and carrying his brother's coffin; he has been missing for 150 days. Police suspect that Rukaj is hiding somewhere in Melbourne and have released CCTV footage of him, describing him as a Caucasian man with short brown hair, standing at 170cm tall, having a solid build, and speaking with a southern European accent.
Written by AI on 2026-09-22, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

On Anzac Day, 47-year-old Orijol Rukaj vanished while under supervision from corrections officers during his brother's funeral at Keilor Cemetery in Melbourne's northwest. Rukaj, described as Caucasian with short brown hair and a southern European accent, was carrying the coffin of his late brother, Sokol Rukaj, who was well-known in Melbourne’s Albanian community. Police believe that despite searching for 150 days, Rukaj remains hidden somewhere within Melbourne rather than having fled overseas. Authorities continue to investigate without any confirmed sightings since his disappearance.

Written for “Inmate Vanishes Carrying Brother's Coffin” on 2026-11-03, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Inmate Vanishes Carrying Brother's Coffin
Crime & Law · 1 article(s) covering the same event.

Compared with similar articles

Nothing to compare against. No article is close enough to this one for the pipeline to have linked or judged the pair.
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
17
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
12%
2 of 17 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Publisher signals
69/100
Daily Mail's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
1
Crime & Law
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-09-22 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

Daily Mail · 8872 article(s) · 22 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 22 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Maisy Rae
96 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 The pandemic proved office jobs could be done from anywhere - giving bosses a chance to swap Australian workers for lower-paid replacements overseas.
🔮 A 37-year-old man was arrested on Mayo Street, Little Bay, a short time later.
🔮 She has been appointed a 'professor of practice' at University of Sydney's School of Public Health and will begin the academic role this month.
🔮 Brisbane mother Rina Cavazza, who paid $170,000 for a berth, said she was unwilling to contribute any more money.
🔮 A NSW man accused of poisoning and secretly filming the abuse of three women, allegedly terrorised one victim's family in a horrifying 20-minute ordeal that culminated in holding her against her will to rape her, court documents reveal.
🔮 Referencing the safety concerns raised by the women, Ms Link said she also hoped her positive experience as A'Vard's current partner would be considered.
🔮 The rules state workers must avoid putting themselves in situations that could hurt them or others, keep a safe distance from aggressors and never follow anyone out of a store.
🔮 Almost every Australian would save around $1,000 a year under tax changes proposed by the Greens that would be paid for by collecting 'rivers of gold' from gas and mining companies.
🔮 The One Nation MP said his former wife, Natalie Abberfield, is among more than 12,000 customers whose funds were wiped out after the First Guardian and Shield Master Funds collapsed in May 2024, owing about $1.2billion.
Also by Maisy Rae
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 96 articles by Maisy Rae →
Kylie Stevens
61 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 Canberra retiree Anne Meade, 79, delivered the blunt advice ahead of an expected Melbourne Cup Day interest rate rise that could push home ownership further out of reach.
🔮 Pictured are One Nation leader Pauline Hanson and MP Barnaby Joyce Primary Minister Anthony Albanese will spend the week mingling with world leaders in the Caribbean as millions of Australian mortgage-holders brace for more interest rate pain
🔮 'I was under the assumption that it was a fun, harmless party drug that would give you a 30-second high and then you would feel normal again,' he told the Daily Mail.
🔮 He is expected to face court later on Thursday.
🔮 Nugent's case will return to Wangaratta Local Court on February 4 for a committal mention hearing.
🔮 'Police are in the process of contacting those potentially impacted by the alleged offending and expect to identify further alleged victims.' 'Working through this process is expected to take some time.
🔮 The One Nation MP said his former wife, Natalie Abberfield, is among more than 12,000 customers whose funds were wiped out after the First Guardian and Shield Master Funds collapsed in May 2024, owing about $1.2billion.
🔮 Another witness added: 'I went out into the foyer and saw the guy who was shot in the stomach, and there was blood everywhere.' Logan mayor Jon Raven revealed on Monday that the young woman now fighting for her life had been a competitor preparing for her bout. 'What we've seen from the people in Logan is a huge amount of compassion that's been pouring out for the people who are injured in this, but especially that young woman,' he told the Today show.
🔮 'So they've pulled us over for no reason, done a full check on us, took our passports and everything.' Mr Assaad could be seen surrounded by officers who appeared to be conducting identification checks and asking for him to remove a hand from his pocket.
Also by Kylie Stevens
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 61 articles by Kylie Stevens →

Topics

Albanian Caucasian Daily Mail Melbourne southern European

Subjects

Rukaj PERSON · 9× Melbourne GPE · 6× Albanian NORP · 2× Caucasian NORP · 2× Orijol Rukaj PERSON · 2× southern European NORP · 2× Daily Mail ORG · 1× Sokol Rukaj PERSON · 1× Victoria Police ORG · 1× the Herald Sun ORG · 1×

Narrative

Orijol Rukaj has been on the run since Anzac Day after escaping authorities at a funeral He was at his brother's funeral at Keilor Cemetery in Melbourne's north-west He is described as Caucasian, 170cm tall with short brown hair, a solid build and a southern European accent '
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-22
🔮 It comes as Victoria Police confirmed this week that officers believe Rukaj remains hiding in Melbourne despite speculation he may have fled overseas.

Claims (17 extracted, 2 hedged)

- See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred Source A Melbourne prisoner who slipped away from authorities while attending his brother's funeral remains on the run 150 days after the escape. asserted
who → see → escape
Orijol Rukaj, 47, was being supervised by corrections officers when he attended Keilor Cemetery in Melbourne's north-west at about 1.30pm on Anzac Day. asserted
he → supervise → Day
Police say the accused cocaine trafficker escaped during the service and left the cemetery undetected. asserted
trafficker → say → cemetery
Rukaj was handcuffed and carrying the coffin of his brother, Sokol Rukaj, a well-known figure in Melbourne's Albanian community, when a crowd of mourners gathered around to say their final goodbyes. asserted
crowd → handcuff → goodbyes
Minutes later, his officers realised there was a problem. asserted
officers → realise → ?
Rukaj was nowhere to be seen. asserted
Rukaj → see → ?
One prison source told the Herald Sun: 'He's goneski... there's so much to it.' asserted
He → tell → it
Detectives have since released CCTV footage of Rukaj, but say there have been no sightings of him in the months since he escaped. asserted
he → release → months
It comes as Victoria Police confirmed this week that officers believe Rukaj remains hiding in Melbourne despite speculation he may have fled overseas. uncertain
he → come → speculation
Orijol Rukaj has been on the run since Anzac Day after escaping authorities at a funeral He was at his brother's funeral at Keilor Cemetery in Melbourne's north-west He is described as Caucasian, 170cm tall with short brown hair, a solid build and a southern European accent ' asserted
He → escape → hair
Though investigators remain open to all possibilities, police believe it is likely that Rukaj remains in hiding in the Melbourne area,' police said. asserted
police → remain → area
Rukaj, who was incarcerated at the Marngoneet Correctional Centre, is alleged by investigators to have links to Albanian organised crime figures. asserted
who → incarcerate → figures
Police say he is known to frequent the Sunbury and St Albans areas. asserted
he → say → areas
Rukaj is described as Caucasian, 170cm tall with short brown hair, a solid build and a southern European accent. asserted
Rukaj → describe → hair
Police warn that anyone found to be harbouring or assisting Rukaj may face significant penalties. uncertain
anyone → warn → penalties
They do not believe Rukaj is violent, but members of the public are urged to call Triple-Zero immediately if they see him. asserted
they → believe → him
Anyone with information is urged to contact police. asserted
Anyone → urge → police
💬Give feedback
🕘History 🎫Support