Nigerian authorities on Tuesday confirmed security operatives have arrested up to 17 fleeing inmates among those who escaped from prison after gunmen attack in the central state of Plateau on Sunday.
Also, an investigation has been launched into the latest prison attack, with an aim to track down “the sponsors of the incessant jailbreaks” across the country, said Mohammed Tukur, a deputy controller general of the Nigeria Correctional Service (NCoS).
Tukur disclosed this to reporters in Jos, capital of central Nigeria’s Plateau state, where the latest attack occurred on Sunday, saying the probe would unravel the identity of the attackers and other necessary details of the incident.
At least, 11 people were killed and 252 inmates escaped from the custodial center in the city of Jos when a group of unknown gunmen attacked the facility Sunday evening, the NCoS earlier confirmed.
“We have commenced investigation on the ugly incident and only when that is concluded that we can ascertain who the perpetrators are.
But I want to assure Nigerians that we will do our best to bring the criminals to book,” said Tukur who was in Jos city to assess the level of damage caused by the attack.
“With the support and collaboration of other security agencies, I want to assure Nigerians that we will recapture all those inmates that have escaped,” the official said further, disclosing that the prison authorities had all the records of the fleeing inmates.
The Jos custodial center at the time of the attack had 1,060 inmates, comprising 560 pre-trial detainees and 500 convicts, said Francis Enobore, the spokesman for the NCoS, in an earlier statement.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian Senate on Tuesday ordered a full-scale investigation into the causes of jailbreaks across the country.
As part of its resolutions on Tuesday, the Senate said it has decided to summon all relevant officials to determine the status of correctional centers nationwide, with a view to finding out the challenges in order to prevent future recurrence.
The Nigerian government last month said that it had launched an audit of prison facilities in the country to determine their vulnerability, following a spate of jailbreaks in parts of the country in recent months. -Xinhua
