Osun jailbreak: FG intensifies border watch after murder suspect recapture

Following the recapture of one of the seven inmates who escaped from the Ilesa Custodial Centre, Osun State, the Nigerian Correctional Service has intensified the search for others still at large.

The spokesperson for the NCoS, Abubakar Umar, said that the Federal Government had alerted international organisations, financial institutions, border control agencies, and security operatives to be on the lookout for the remaining six suspects.

He explained that the jailbreak occurred around 2am after torrential rainfall wreaked havoc on the perimeter fence of the facility, creating an opening through which the inmates fled.

After the declaration of a N5m bounty for information leading to their arrest, one of the escapees, Kabiru Oyedun, was arrested in the Ayobo area of Lagos State on Friday.

Oyedun is awaiting trial for murder.

In June 2021, he was arrested for allegedly killing a young woman after luring her from Ibadan, Oyo State, to Apomu, Osun State.

Together with the victim’s boyfriend, he was said to have dismembered her remains for ritual purposes.

At the time of his arrest, Oyedun was paraded by the then Osun State Commissioner of Police, Wale Olokode, who disclosed that dismembered body parts were recovered from the suspect in Apomu.

Aside from Oyedun’s recapture, the remaining six suspects are still at large. Three of them were remanded over armed robbery, one for burglary and theft, and two for illegal possession of firearms and robbery.

Speaking on sunday , Umar said efforts to rearrest them were ongoing in collaboration with sister security agencies.

He explained that surveillance at motor parks and border posts had been intensified to prevent the fugitives from fleeing the country.

“All security agencies and relevant institutions and stakeholders like international organisations, financial institutions, motor parks, border posts, among others, have been alerted,” he stated.

The correctional service spokesperson also assured that community leaders were involved in the manhunt for the escapees.

“Very soon, every one of them will be taken into custody,” he said.

Infrastructural weaknesses

The jailbreak in Ilesa is the latest in a string of escapes attributed to structural weaknesses in Nigeria’s correctional facilities.

The situation has raised fresh concerns about the state of custodial infrastructure across the country.

In April 2024, 119 inmates escaped from the Suleja Medium Security Custodial Centre in Niger State after a downpour collapsed sections of the perimeter fence. Only 14 were rearrested, while over 100 remain at large.

Similarly, in September 2024, another 281 inmates broke free from the Maiduguri Medium Security Custodial Centre after flooding compromised the facility’s outer walls.

Only a handful were eventually recaptured.

Security experts have continued to express concerns over the recurring pattern of jailbreaks, warning that continued neglect of correctional infrastructure could pose grave security threats.

As part of broader reform efforts, the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, disclosed in February that President Bola Tinubu had approved the relocation of 29 custodial centres to more secure locations.

The move, according to the ministry, was aimed at addressing structural vulnerabilities and improving custodial security.

Jailbreak records

News had reported that no fewer than 6,675 inmates, including convicted terrorists, murderers, and armed robbers, escaped from 13 custodial centres across the country in the last five years.

Out of this number, 2,032 inmates, representing only 30.4 per cent, were recaptured by security operatives.

A staggering 4,643 fugitives, accounting for 69.5 per cent, remain at large, raising serious national security concerns.

In March 2024, 12 inmates escaped following an attack on the Koton-Karfe Custodial Centre in Kogi State.

Five of the inmates were later recaptured, while seven are still at large.

In September 2024, 281 inmates reportedly escaped from the Maiduguri Medium Security Custodial Centre in Borno State following severe flooding in the capital city.

The inmates fled after a portion of the perimeter fence of the facility was pulled down by the flood caused by the collapse of the Alau Dam.

Only seven were reportedly recaptured.

On April 25, 2024, 119 inmates also escaped from the Suleja Medium Security Custodial Centre in Niger State. While security agencies recaptured 14, no fewer than 105 others have remained at large for more than four months.

Experts demand overhaul

Following the fourth jailbreak in Nigeria within 18 months, security experts called for an urgent and comprehensive overhaul of the nation’s prison system, warning that continued neglect poses a grave threat to national security.

They blamed the repeated breaches on the failure of the prison infrastructure, which, according to them, remains outdated, overcrowded, and poorly secured.

Reacting, a security expert and fellow, Institute of Security Nigeria, Chigozie Ubani, warned that Nigeria’s correctional system was dangerously exposed and in need of an urgent and comprehensive overhaul.

He emphasised the need for advanced infrastructure and layered security architecture in correctional facilities.

Ubani said, “It is the inadequate investment we have made in the correctional sector that is largely responsible for repeated jailbreaks experienced across the country.

“It is a big risk to have jailbreaks happen so easily and frequently. This has occurred four or five times in the last few years. It doesn’t speak well of us as a nation.

“There is a need to have a better design, reinforcement, and buffer zones. You don’t just walk out of prison into society. We need more effective perimeter security, surveillance systems, and proper monitoring.”

He questioned the functionality of existing security measures during jailbreaks and raised concerns about the security risk posed by escapees.

Some prisoners may flee to neighbouring countries through our porous borders. Worse still, some may return to seek revenge on those who testified against them or the officers who arrested them. The risk is enormous for the society, for victims, and for law enforcement,” he added.

Also speaking, a former Director of the Department of State Services, Mike Ejiofor, linked the repeated jailbreaks to poor infrastructure and funding.

“Most of our correctional facilities are old and dilapidated. You can imagine the last jailbreak was caused by flooding. The walls are weak, the facilities are overpopulated, and underfunded. These are the issues that need to be addressed,” he said.

Ejiofor warned that the current state of Nigeria’s prisons would further worsen the country’s already fragile security situation.