At least 10 inmates and a Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) Officer were killed by gunmen suspected to be members of Ansaru terrorists group during an attack on the Kuje Correctional Centre in Abuja, the nation’s capital.
Truetells Nigeria reports that the gunmen had used bombs to forcibly gain control of all entry and exit points of the facility on Tuesday and released over 855 inmates including their members.
SaharaReporters had on Tuesday reported that the facility was under attack by gunmen.
A source said that the terrorists invaded the facility around 9:05pm and operated till 1:30am on Wednesday morning.
“About ten of the inmates were killed during the attack, a Civil Defence official was also confirmed dead. Some of the inmates sustained injuries as well, everywhere is calm now,” a top prison official told SaharaReporters.
SaharaReporters also learnt that other inmates had been removed from the facility including the suspended deputy commissioner of police, Abba Kyari, who was remanded at the prison by a Federal High Court.
Kyari is standing trial for allegedly dealing in cocaine alongside four members of his former police unit, the Inspector-General of Police Intelligence Response Unit (IRT), and two other persons arrested at the Akanu Ibiam International Airport in Enugu, Enugu State, in January this year.
Gunmen suspected to be terrorists on Tuesday night attacked the prison facility in Nigeria’s capital city, and SaharaReporters learnt that the facility was ruined by the heavy firepower brought by the assailants.
Kuje prison was established in 1989, it has minimum and maximum holding cells where inmates are incarcerated.
It is famous for holding high-profile offenders, including former governors and ministers.
This is not the first time gunmen will attack correctional centres in the country, releasing inmates while killing some security officials.
In October, 2021, over 800 prisoners were freed when gunmen attacked a correctional facility in Oyo State.
The jail attack in Oyo followed similar attacks in Imo state in April 2021 where more than 1,800 inmates were freed, while another 266 prisoners were forcibly released in Kogi state in September same year.
