ABUJA, April 26 (Xinhua) -- The Nigerian government on Thursday ordered a manhunt for 109 inmates who escaped from a custodial center following a heavy downpour that damaged part of the facility late Wednesday.
After assessing the Suleja Custodial Center in the north-central state, Interior Minister Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo told media that all security agencies had been alerted to apprehend the fleeing inmates and ensure their immediate return to the facility.
Tunji-Ojo added that the biometric information of the fleeing inmates would soon be released to the public, urging the inmates to return to the correctional facility of their own volition.
At least 119 inmates escaped Wednesday night from the custodial center, out of which 10 were recaptured and taken back into custody, according to Samson Duza, a spokesman for the Nigerian Correctional Service in the central region. ■
