An undisclosed number of inmates on
Friday gained entrance into the armoury of the Calabar Prison in Cross
River State and attempted to escape after a gun duel with warders but
were overpowered by combined team of security agents.
The incident, which occurred at about
11:00am, was said to have caused pandemonium as residents of
neighbouring Afokang, Iman and Jebbs areas of the metropolis scampered
for safety.
The Afokang end of the prison fence was
broken during the incident while two inmates were said to have escaped
but the Comptroller of Prisons in the state, Mr. Clement Udosen, denied
the claim.
It was, however, not clear how the
inmates gained access to the armoury, but it was learnt that a total of
53 rifles were recovered after the incident while one could not be
accounted for.
An anonymous prison official said about
17 hardened criminals consisting kidnappers, drug barons, ex-militants
and armed robbers were brought to the prisons two weeks ago. He said
their arrival sent an alert that something untoward might happen.
An eyewitness, Solomon Okoro, said two of
the inmates escaped through the broken fence but one of them was
apprehended by vigilant youths in Afokang Street while the other
escaped.
Reacting to the development, Udosen said,
“By 11 o’clock in the morning, the DC in charge of this prison called
me that there was a serious problem. When I came, the whole place was
filled with people with rifles, people who had come here to help us, the
soldiers, police, civil defence, state security service and others.
“Two cells of about 70 prisoners each
organised themselves and overpowered the prison staff and rushed to the
armoury, seized some rifles and went back to fire at the staff. In that
confusion they broke other cells and the whole yard was filled with
inmates.
“Luckily for now they have all been rounded up and nobody has escaped.
“A lot of people have been injured and one staff had been rushed to the hospital.”
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