The Minister of Defence, Bashir Magashi, has said none of the Boko Haram suspects detained at Kuje prison in Abuja was found after the attack on the facilities on Tuesday night, Daily Trust reports.
Sources had told Daily Trust that high-profile Boko Haram suspects and bandits escaped during the invasion of the prison on Tuesday night.
Read Also: DCP Abba Kyari, Dariye, Nyame reportedly ‘missing’ after Kuje attack
Addressing journalists after taking an assessment tour of the facility, the minister said, “The attack started around 10:30pm. They came in their numbers gained entrance into the prison and they released some of the inmates and which we are now following to see the kind of inmates that they have released.
“Very soon, we will give you the correct figure of the inmates that were taken. Aside that, we are trying to see what we can do to ensure that all escapees are returned back.
“The prison is accommodating about 994 inmates and over 600 escaped. Many people have been recaptured and brought back to the prison. Maybe by the close of the day, more will have been captured and returned.
“I think everything is under control. The people who came to do this activity, from the records, we believe they belong to a particular group. Most likely, they are Boko Haram members because we have sizeable number of Boko Haram suspects in detention, and presently we cannot locate any of them.
“I think they are about 64 in the prison and none of them now is available they have all escaped.”
DCP Abba Kyari, Dariye, Nyame reportedly ‘missing’ after Kuje attack
Some high profile inmates at the Kuje Correctional Centre, Abuja may have escaped Tuesday night’s attacks on the facility by some gunmen.
The attacks, which lasted some hours, were said to have been resisted by military personnel and prison guards on duty, The Nation reports.
Read Also: Kuje prison under bomb attack
Sources said Deputy Commissioner of Police, Abba Kyari and his men who were in the facility may have escaped from the facility.
Gunmen bombarded the facility with bombs and explosives on Tuesday night.
Former Plateau Governor Joshua Dariye and his Taraba counterpart Jolly Nyame who had been granted pardon by the National Council of States were also in the facility.
The Federal Government was yet to effect their release as of the time of the attacks.
Sources within the facility confided in The Nation that besides the high profile inmates, some terrorists and other criminals might have escaped in the thickness of the darkness and the gunfire from the attackers.
However, as of the time of filing this report, there was no official confirmation on the number of escapees and their profiles.
