Woman arrested for smuggling phones into prisons

By Amos Dunia, Persecond News

Abuja – The Nigeria Prison Service (NPS), has said that its men of the Special Intelligence Squad, Ogun State Command have succeeded in bursting a syndicate that specialized in smuggling communication gadgets including mobile phones into prisons in the state.

A statement by the Ogun State Command Public Relations of the NPS, DSP Victor Oyeleke said a female suspect named Fatimo Balogun was nabbed in an attempt to smuggle a Nokia Phone concealed in a cellophane bag and buried in a pot of soup into the Abeokuta old Prison.

Oyeleke recalled that on October 13, 2017, there was a newspaper report alleging that a prisoner in one of the Prison facilities coordinates interstate robbery operation from inside the prison.
He said that in a swift response, the Comptroller General of Prisons, Ja’afaru Ahmed immediately ordered an investigation into the allegation and also read the Riot Act to all Commands.

Oyeleke further said; “The danger of using mobile phone and other prohibited items in the prison are enormous as prisoners always cash in on such opportunities to perpetuate evil.

“It is observed that a number of ugly incidences of escape and jailbreaks recorded by the service in the past, were found to be facilitated by the use of mobile phones.

“As a matter of strategy, the strict and dogged approach of the present Controller General of Prisons, has paid-off as evident in this case. The NPS is well repositioned and committed to achieving its primary mandate of providing safe and humane custody for those legally interred, as a major component of Nigeria’s internal security architecture.”

The spokesman of the Ogun State Command of NPS said the suspect has been arrested and handed over to the Police for further investigation and subsequent prosecution.

The NPS assured members of the public of its dedication to providing excellent penal Services as mandated by law and therefore solicit the support of well-meaning Nigerians to compliment the efforts of the government in stamping out criminal elements in the society.

The NPS warned relations, friends and visitors to prisons facilities where prisoners are kept to desist from smuggling prohibited items capable of compromising security into the yard, stressing that the authority will not hesitate to take decisive action against violators.