Naked prison break: 3 inmates dead, 7 recaptured
Police and locals pursue the armed fugitives who stole 15 guns from prison wardens before they escaped.
What you need to know:
- The inmates overpowered prison staff before accessing the armory from which they took at least 15 guns.
- The army is still hunting for the escapees.
At least three inmates who escaped from Singila Prison in Moroto District, Uganda on Wednesday have been killed while seven others were recaptured, prison authorities have confirmed.
Mr Frank Baine, the prisons spokesperson, said a total of 219 inmates managed to escape from the facility which houses 620 prisoners.
Mr Baine said that after the incident, a joint security force comprising of the Ugandan army and police was dispatched and spent the whole night patrolling parts of Mt Moroto where the prisoners had climbed.
“By this morning (Thursday), seven of the escapees had been captured and three others are counted dead,” he said.
He says a team from Soroti Prison has been dispatched to reinforce their counterparts at Singila.
“More manpower has been dispatched from Soroti to Moroto to help in hunting for the escapees before they gain access into Kenya where it will be very hard to get them,” he said.
On Wednesday at around 4.30pm, more than 50 prisoners - both women and men - who were serving various sentences escaped from the premises with more than 15 guns.
The inmates overpowered prison staff before accessing the armory from which they took at least 15 guns.
In the fire exchange that lasted close to an hour, one Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) soldier was reportedly shot dead.
Maj Peter Mugisha, the UPDF 3rd Division Spokesperson, said the army is still hunting for the escapees.
Report by Steven Ariong
