Chief Judge Pardons 153 Kirikiri Inmates

A hundred and fifty three inmates of the Kirikiri maximum and medium prisons have been released by the Chief Judge of Lagos State, Justice Olufunmilola Atilade as part of attempts to depopulate the prisons that were presently congested.

The Chief Judge, who was accompanied by senior members of the judiciary including: judges, magistrates, the Chief Registrar, officials of the Lagos Ministry of Justice and members of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), released 24 inmates from the Kirikiri Maximum Security Prison and 129 from the Medium Security Prison.

Among the 129 inmates released from the Medium Security Prison, 79 were standing trial for capital offences while 50 were standing trial for minor offences.

Justice Atilade said the amnesty granted the inmates was part of her statutory duty to continuously ensure that the prisons were not congested.

‎She said the release of the inmates was in exercise of her power as the Chief Judge of the state pursuant to the provisions of Section 1(1) of the Criminal Justice Release from Custody Special Provision Act CAP C40, 2007, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria.

The chief judge ‎said the exercise was also to ensure that deserving inmates were made to breathe fresh air of freedom.

She urged the beneficiaries of her amnesty exercise to reciprocate the gesture by ensuring that they do not return back to crime.

Justice Atilade also called on all relevant stakeholders in the justice sector to joined the prison decongestion effort. The Deputy Comptroller in charge of Kirikiri Maximum Prison, Seye Oduntan, thanked the Chief Judge for the amnesty gesture.

He implored the Chief Judge to ensure that the programme was a continuous one as more inmates who qualified for the exercise still abound in the prison.

As at Wednesday, the Kirikiri Maximum Security Prison with a holding capacity of 1,053 inmates was accommodating 1,235 inmates out of which 772 are awaiting trial, 209 have been convicted, 83 are serving life sentence, while 171 are on death row.

Also, the Medium Security Prison which has a capacity to accommodate 1,700 inmates, currently houses 2,853 inmates out of which  2,276 are awaiting trial, 128 have been convicted, 25 are lodgers, 19 are detainees and one inmate is on death row.

Justice Atilade would continue the exercise at Ikoyi Prison on Thursady.