The Nigerian Correctional Service, NCoS, says 53,836 inmates in the 253 correctional centres across the country are awaiting trial as at December 18.
The spokesperson of the service, Assistant Controller of Corrections (ACC) Abubakar Umar made this revelation to newsmen in Abuja on Thursday.
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Umar said the summary of the inmates across the country by conviction and those on awaiting trial list was 77,849 within the period under review.
He said the total number of convicted inmates was 24,013, stressing that the convicted male inmates are 23,569 and 444 are female.
“Statistics show that 69 percent of the inmates in Custodial Centres are actually awaiting trial, while 31 percent are convicted inmates,” he said.
According to him, one of the challenges of the service was the issue of dilapidated custodial structures, which resulted in overcrowded and congested spaces within the centres.
The spokesman said the government has recently constructed 3,000 ultra-modern additional custodial facilities across the six geopolitical zones to decongest existing centres.
He said the initiative would help in decongesting the centers as well as enhance the welfare and health of the inmates.
“That of Kano has been inaugurated and we are expecting speedy completion on the remaining facilities under construction,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Katsina Command of the Nigeria Correctional Services, NCoS, has recaptured the two inmates who escaped from the Medium Security Custodial Centre in Katsina, in October.
One of the fugitives, Ibrahim Muhammad-Lawal, alias Abba Kala, was arrested shortly after their escape while the other, Musa Isah, was arrested on Tuesday in Kaduna.
This was confirmed by the spokesman of the command, ASC Najib Idris, on Wednesday in Katsina.
The two inmates were awaiting trial for alleged robbery when they escaped.
“A search party was immediately constituted in collaboration with sister security agencies, and this led to the arrest of one of the fugitives, Lawal Ibrahim Muhammad-Lawal, also called ‘Abba Kala’.
“In order to recapture the remaining one, the Service deployed its e-tracking mechanism as well as overt and covert intelligence gathering.
“This resulted in the recapture of the second escapee, Musa Isah, on Dec. 19, in Kaduna metropolis,” the command spokesman added.
He said that the Controller General of Corrections, Haliru Nababa, has appreciated the effort of the search team for re-arresting the fugitives.
Mr Nababa said through the Controller of the Command, Muhammad Abdulmumin, that he would intensify efforts to secure all custodial centres in the country.
NAN