President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday approved the appointment of Ahmed Ja’afaru as the Controller-General of the Nigeria Prisons Service (NPS).
Until his appointment, Ja’afaru was an Assistant Controller -General of the NPS Headquarters.
According to a statement issued by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Interior, Bassey Akpanyung, Ja’afaru replaces Dr. Peter Ezenwa Ekpendu, who retired from the NPS after the mandatory 35 years in service.
The appointment took effect from May 17.
The Nigeria Prisons Service (NPS), Friday denied the escape of any prisoner in an accident that occurred along Mile 2, Badagry Express in Lagos.
According to a statement issued in Abuja on the development by the NPS Public Relations Officer, Francis Enobore: “The attention of the Nigerian Prisons Service has been drawn to publications in some news media that a Prison Bus conveying some prisoners to court rammed into a stationary truck along Mile 2, Badagry Express in Lagos and that a number of prisoners escaped in the incident.
“Whereas it is true that an accident involving a prison bus did happen along Badagry Express Way, the reported escape of prisoners in the vehicle is false.
“To put the record straight, the prison bus left Badagry prison with 27 prisoners and had already dropped 26 of them in various courts leaving just 1 inmate and 5 staff including the driver in the vehicle when the accident occurred at about 1045hrs.
“The inmate did not sustain any injury and was returned safely to the prison. A separate vehicle was deployed to evacuate the other 26 prisoners from their various courts back to the prison. Although 2 of the staff members and some occupants of the other vehicle with whom they collided had serious injuries, there was however no death. The injured are being attended to in hospitals and they are responding to treatment even as we fervently pray for their quick recovery.
“While the unfortunate incident is highly regretted, it is important to restate that no prisoner escaped and none sustain any injury.”
The Nigeria Prisons Service on Wednesday described as “rumour” the death of the alleged mastermind of the 2010 Independence Day bombing in Abuja, Charles Okah.
Okah was said to have died in prison shortly after returning from a scheduled court appearance on Last Tuesday.
Speaking on Okah’s purported death, the NPS spokesman, Francis Enobore, told The Nation that it was a rumour, adding that the suspect is not dead.
He said, “Charles Okah is not dead. The information you received was false and please disregard it.”
Security operatives attached to Justice Gabriel Kolawole of the Federal High Court, Abuja, had on Tuesday prevented the suspected terrorist from committing suicide while in court.
Okah, who is standing trial on charges of terrorism, had sought the permission of the judge to speak on what he termed “endless trial” as his counsel was absent in court.
After he ended his speech, he grabbed a chair in the court and quickly moved toward a window on third floor of the five-storey building and tried to jump down, but was held back by security operatives.