Ololade Adeyanju/
The gunmen who invaded the Abolongo Correctional Centre, in Oyo town, on Friday night are believed to be Fulani bandits operating in Kogi State and Oke-Ogun axis of Oyo State.
The gunmen attacked the facility with explosives around 9.30pm, leading to the escape of over 800 awaiting trial inmates from the facility.
Two security agents, including a soldier, and an Amotekun operatives, as wall as an inmate, died in the attack. The inmate reportedly died while attempting to scale the fence of the prison.
Official sources told NewsmakersNG that the sole reason for the attack was to set free two bandit kingpins that were being kept in the facility pending their arraignment. One of them is said to be Fulani warlord, Iskilu Wakili.
This, according to the sources, was why the gunmen only vandalised the section of the prison housing awaiting trial inmates and spared the section where convicts are being kept.
The attackers were also said to have retreated immediately after extracting the two high profile detainees they came to set free.
Majority of the other inmates merely capitalised on the situation to escape, the sources added.
Meanwhile, the Nigeria Correctional Service, Oyo State Command, has confirmed that 837 awaiting trial inmates escaped from the Abolongo Correctional Centre during the attack.
Its Public Relations Officer, Olanrewaju Anjorin, made this known in a statement today in Ibadan.
Anjorin said all the 837 awaiting trial inmates were freed by the attackers, pointing out that the cell housing the convicts and the inmates were not vandalised.
He said that a total of 262 escaped inmates had been recaptured, while 575 were still at large.
“The invaders arrived the centre heavily armed with sophisticated weapons and after a fierce encounter with the officers on guard, they gained entrance into the yard, using dynamite to blast the wall.
“All the awaiting trial detainees were forced out of custody, the cells housing the convicts and the female inmates were not vandalised.
“Meanwhile, a total of 262 of the escapees have been recaptured leaving 575 still at large.
“Following the directives of the Controller-General of Corrections, Haliru Nababa, the State Controller, Noel Ailewon, has commenced the process of search and recapture after visiting the scene of the incident,” Anjorin said.
He said the state controller had assured the public that no effort would be spared to recapture the fleeing inmates.
According to him, the controller-general has solicited for credible intelligence to assist the security agencies in tracking down the fleeing inmates.
He said that the Oyo Custodial Centre was established in 2007 with a capacity of 160 inmates, but had a total population of 907 at the time of attack.
“Of this number, awaiting trial persons were 837 representing 92 per cent with just 64 convicts,” Anjorin said.
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