By Amos Igbebe
For alleged unfaithfulness of the controller of Warri Prison, inmates at the Warri Federal Prison, Saturday took laws into their hands, staging a protest against the management of the prison and calling for the redeployment of the Prison Controller, ASP Jude Okoro.
The riot which was quelled by the timely intervention of the military and the police in Warri metropolis, however, recorded no escapee among the prison inmates. The prisoners accused the Controller of being a difficult man and extorting the prisoners.
The prisoners included the convicted, those already serving jail terms, the condemned and the awaiting trials, all staged the protest, calling for the head of ASP Jude Okoro.
Sources close to the prison formation revealed that the prisoners had complained of lack of poor water supply, electricity and the unruly conduct of Okoro, accusing him of diverting items donated to the inmates by charity organisations in the area.
The source said the inmates had sought opportunity to have a talk with him but he turned their request down, just as it was alleged that he slapped one of the inmates who wanted to fetch water in the yard, saying he was wasting the water.
The conduct of the controller had led to mounting tension in the prison even as it was alleged that the State Controller of Prisons also turned down their request to see him in Asaba, the Delta State capital..
The peaceful protest the inmates embarked on Saturday morning degenerated into riot when the driver of ASP Okoro was said to have used tear gas on the inmates, leading to destruction of the prison administrative building.
It was learnt that the intervention of the security agents in Warri brought sanity to already tensed atmosphere.
Attempts to speak to ASP Jude Okoro, were, however, unsuccessful, though no escape was recorded.
