BY REBECCA AJANI
THE Ondo State Command of the National Correctional Service has confirmed that a total of 58 inmates were freed by the hoodlums who invaded the Correctional Service Centre in Okitipupa, headquarters of the Okitipupa Local Government Area of Ondo State.
Confirming the development, the Spokesperson for the Ondo State Commad of the NCS, Ogundare Babatunde, said the hoodlums stormed the centre at about 10.30am on Thursday.
He said they broke into four of the six cells and set them ablaze, adding that a van was also burnt, while machines belonging to the NCS were destroyed.
According to him, the hoodlums overwhelmed the soldiers stationed at the Centre.
He said, “When they first came, the security agencies around appealed to them not to carry out the attack, so they went back but later they reinforced, over a thousand of them overwhelmed the soldiers and the NSCDC officer who were trying to stop them.
“They broke the wall of the place; they broke into four out of the six cells and burnt them down. They set ablaze the van on the premises and some of our machines were destroyed. They also forcefully released all the 58 inmates.”
The Command has commenced efforts to capture the fleeing inmates, he said.
