Jail break: Four killed as 36 dangerous prisoners escape from Akwa Ibom prison

 Four inmates were on Wednesday killed while 36 others escaped in a  jailbreak at Ikot Ekpene Prison, in Akwa Ibom state.

The spokesperson for the prison, Ogbajie Ogbajie in a statement on Thursday said that the prisoners attacked prison kitchen’s staff and proceeded to escape through the rear entrance of the prison.

“At about 11:47hrs on Wednesday, 27 December 2017, there was an attack on kitchen staff that were on duty at Ikot Ekpene Prison in Akwa-Ibom State by some prisoners.

“They seized an axe from fellow inmate attached to the kitchen, inflicting a deep cut to inmate’s head in the process and immediately made for the rear entrance to the prison. They broke the door with the axe and engaged the staff that chased after them in battle,” he said.

Ogbajie said further that seven of the fleeing inmates were recaptured while four others who were hit by gunshots died.

“At the end of the scuffle, four of them that sustained gunshots lost their lives while seven were recaptured. 36 are still at large and search parties have been activated to effect their recapture,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Controller of Prisons (CP), Akwa Ibom State Command, Alex Oditah, has ordered an investigation into the circumstance surrounding the jailbreak.

The CP, therefore, appealed to members of the public to assist the authority with useful intelligence that will aid in the arrest of the fleeing prisoners assuring that security has been strengthened in all prison formations in the state to forestall breach of security. Channels TV