麻豆影视

Skip to main content

240 inmates missing after Nigeria prison break: official

Nigeria is shown in this image taken from Google Maps. (Screengrab / Google Maps) Nigeria is shown in this image taken from Google Maps. (Screengrab / Google Maps)
Share
LAGOS, Nigeria -

Assailants attacked a prison in north-central Nigeria with explosives and gunfire at midnight, killing two security officers and leaving 240 inmates still missing on Monday, authorities said.

Interior Minister Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola said two other security officers remained missing after the violence at the correctional facility in Kogi state. A task force has been set up to recapture the inmates, he added.

The gunmen destroyed three sides of the prison's perimeter fence with explosives and then overcame a team of 35 security officers, officials said. The prison was holding 294 inmates, but some did not try to escape and others had returned voluntarily Monday morning.

Sunday's attack marks the second prison break this year in Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation.

Authorities do not believe the incidents are connected, though, as the April jailbreak was blamed on pro-Biafra secessionists in the southeast. Some 1,844 inmates were set free during that violent attack in Imo state.

Two other prison breaks took place in the country's southwest late last year amid nationwide protests against the police.

CTVNews.ca Top Stories

Infectious disease physician Dr. Isaac Bogoch says whooping cough is most risky for unvaccinated infants, children and older people.

Local Spotlight

Cole Haas is more than just an avid fan of the F.W. Johnson Wildcats football team. He's a fixture on the sidelines, a source of encouragement, and a beloved member of the team.

Getting a photograph of a rainbow? Common. Getting a photo of a lightning strike? Rare. Getting a photo of both at the same time? Extremely rare, but it happened to a Manitoba photographer this week.

An anonymous business owner paid off the mortgage for a New Brunswick not-for-profit.

They say a dog is a man鈥檚 best friend. In the case of Darren Cropper, from Bonfield, Ont., his three-year-old Siberian husky and golden retriever mix named Bear literally saved his life.

A growing group of brides and wedding photographers from across the province say they have been taken for tens of thousands of dollars by a Barrie, Ont. wedding photographer.

Paleontologists from the Royal B.C. Museum have uncovered "a trove of extraordinary fossils" high in the mountains of northern B.C., the museum announced Thursday.

The search for a missing ancient 28-year-old chocolate donkey ended with a tragic discovery Wednesday.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police is celebrating an important milestone in the organization's history: 50 years since the first women joined the force.

It's been a whirlwind of joyful events for a northern Ontario couple who just welcomed a baby into their family and won the $70 million Lotto Max jackpot last month.