Prison riot: Four feared dead, many injured *One inmate dead, three hospitalised-Prisons *Riot, jailbreak overdue-Lawyer

Fresh facts have emerged about the bloody riot that occurred at the Kirikiri Medium prisons on Friday, leading to the alleged death of four inmates and injury of several others.
This was even as the prison authourity on Saturday, announced that only one inmate died from the Friday conflict after head counts were taken. The prisons authourity added that seven inmates were injured and the inmates that died, did so Saturday morning.
The spokesperson for the Nigerian Prisons Service, Mr. Ope Fatinikun said: “ There was a riot at medium security prison yesterday. It  happened at about 1:30pm. It was a riot, not a jail break. The riot was quickly brought under control.  The Acting Comptroller of prison, Mr. Aminu .A. Sule has set up a probe panel, headed by Assistant Comptroller General of Prisons, Operations, to look into the cause of the riot.  Seven inmates sustained injuries. Three were treated and discharged, while four were hospitalised. One died this morning, remaining three in the hospital.”
A prison source however said he and others saw four inmates who were shot and believed they were dead. He added that head counts could not be taken on Saturday because the inmates were ‘ now clamped down.’

He added: “Clamp down means all inmates would be locked up in their cells, under tight security.”
The source who said no prison warder was killed in the clash, said the issue started like child’s play and snowballed into a riot, with some inmates moving towards the wall of the prison, in an obvious attempt to escape.
“The whole issue started because of our pastor. We call him the general overseer. You see, there are several pastors in prison, but he’s the general overseer of all. The fan in question had been repaired and the pastor wanted to retrieve it, but the funny warder wouldn’t allow him. In stead the warder locked him up.
“The inmates started shouting, we no gree! we no gree! They started throwing stones and began to break glasses. The next thing was that those soldiers who are always at the gates with dogs, were brought in. The soldiers started shooting. No warder was killed, but many inmates were injured. Four inmates suspected killed.
“Soldiers in such situation used to shoot into the air, but some of the inmates wanted to cease the opportunity to escape. Those shot were inmates who moved towards the wall, probably with intent to escape.”
He revealed that the general overseer will be punished, as it was against the rule for an inmate to challenge a warder.
Another inmates said only one person died, adding that the riot was not caused by the general overseer, but by arrival of a new Deputy Comptroller of Prisons (DCP), who imposed laws, which included seizing inmates comfort items like fans, stove, pots, phones, amongst others items. The inmates felt the laws were draconian.
A source said: “Inmates are not supposed to have such items, but things are beginning to change in prisons. The authourity wanted to seize the fans of every inmates who uses one. That was what triggered the riot.
Prominent Lawyer, Chief Gabriel Giwa-Amu, founder of the Stephen & Solomon Foundation, which over the years has secured the release of over 500 indigent inmates from prisons across the country through free legal services and canvasses for prisons renovations, said the riot and attempted jailbreak in Lagos prison was long overdue. According to him, such occurrences should be expected soonest in other prisons.
He said that the reasons for such occurrences were because prisons all over the country are overcrowded. The prisons staff are overworked and many of them had not gone for training in the last 20 years, he maintained.
His words:  “When a handler of a dog is not well fed, he would share from the food of the dog. That’s what’s happening in the Nigerian Prisons today. The prisons are not well maintained. It’s not a question of the prison officers, not doing their best. When the prisons are not well maintained, you’ll have inmates who are dissatisfied and would want to riot. Like Ikoyi prison; it’s built for 200 inmates, but houses over 1000. We’ve not had riot or jailbreak in Lagos for a long time and its because the prisons officials there, relate with the inmates one-on-one.
“Under prisons regulation, an inmate is not supposed to have a fan. An inmate is not supposed to have a generator or take drug like Indian hemp. But in prisons as I know it, a bag of Indian hemp sells for N250.000. That same bag sells for N50.000 outside the prison yard. These substances are smuggled in by prison warders. Even, some of the inmates have cell phones.”