Twelve prisoners escaped from a correctional facility in central Nigeria on Monday, raising fresh concerns over the country’s prison security.
Kogi State Commissioner for Information Femi Fanwo blamed the escape on “internal compromise and collaboration,” stating that the prisoners fled through a tower without causing structural damage.
Authorities are investigating the circumstances surrounding the breakout.
One escapee has been recaptured, but efforts continue to locate the remaining prisoners.
With a 147 percent overpopulation rate, Nigeria’s prisons are vulnerable to such incidents, exacerbated by aging infrastructure and prolonged pre-trial detentions, according to the United Nations.
Interior Minister Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, who recently oversaw the pardon of 4,000 inmates to ease congestion, has ordered an immediate investigation into the jailbreak.
Prison breaks are not uncommon in Nigeria. In 2023, nearly 120 inmates escaped when torrential rains collapsed a perimeter wall at a facility near Abuja.
Armed groups have also targeted prisons, including a 2022 attack that freed 600 inmates, some linked to Islamic State and Boko Haram.
In 2021, coordinated assaults in Imo and Oyo states resulted in over 2,600 prisoners escaping.
