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Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal – Vol. 8, No. 5
Publication Date: May 25, 2021
DOI:10.14738/assrj.85.10185.
Abiodun, T. F., Akinlade, M. T., Onyi, A. B., & Daramola, A. A. (2021). Recurrent Waves of Jailbreak in Nigeria: The Imperatives of
Prison Intelligence and Dynamic Security Strategies in Managing the Nigerian Correctional Facilities. Advances in Social Sciences
Research Journal, 8(5). 229-250.
Services for Science and Education – United Kingdom
Recurrent Waves of Jailbreak in Nigeria: The Imperatives of
Prison Intelligence and Dynamic Security Strategies in Managing
the Nigerian Correctional Facilities
Dr. Temitope Francis Abiodun
Department of Peace, Security and Humanitarian Studies
Faculty of Multidisciplinary Studies, University of Ibadan, Nigeria
Marcus Temitayo Akinlade
Department of Political Science and International Diplomacy
School of Social and Management Sciences
Bamidele Olumilua University of Education, Science and Technology
Ikere-Ekiti, Ekiti State, Nigeria
Akinde Blessing Onyi
Assistant Controller of Corrections, Nigerian Correctional Services
State Headquarters Office, Osogbo, Osun State, Nigeria
Adedotun Abidemi Daramola
Postgraduate Student, Peace and Conflict Studies Programme
Department of Peace, Security and Humanitarian Studies
Faculty of Multidisciplinary Studies
University of Ibadan, Nigeria
ABSTRACT
This paper painstakingly addresses the phenomenon of rising waves of prison or
jailbreak in Nigeria. And as generally observed according to the dictates of Nigerian
law, jail or prison break remains an illegal or unlawful act under which a prisoner
forces his or her way out of the prison in a state. This phenomenon of jailbreaks has
in one way or the other impacted negatively on the society and posed dangerous
threats to national peace and security. The paper in its objectives endeavours to:
highlight the series of jailbreaks that have taken place in Nigeria and the various
techniques employed by the escapees; interrogate the causal factors of jailbreaks in
the country; and also examine the roles of prison intelligence and dynamic security
in curtailing the menace. The study makes use of the regulatory capture theory to
explain the bane of the phenomena while descriptive and content-analysis
techniques are adopted. With the aid of primary and secondary data, the paper is
able to reveal that; corruption, ineffective Correctional Service Arms Squad and
Intelligence Unit, lack of prison intelligence and dynamic security, among others
have weakened the Nigerian Correctional facilities’ security and led to incessant
jailbreaks in Nigeria. The paper, however, recommended; putting in place a very
sensitive nature of prison information and intelligence; establishing a prison
intelligence management board; adopting a multi-agency approach security
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Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal (ASSRJ) Vol. 8, Issue 5, May-2021
Services for Science and Education – United Kingdom
strategy; and training of prison-based intelligence officers for intelligence
gathering and information sharing as strategies of curtailing the rising spate of
jailbreaks in Nigeria.
Keywords: Prison intelligence, Dynamic security strategies, Nigerian Correctional
Service, Jailbreak, Regulatory capture theory, Corruption.
INTRODUCTION
The origin of Western prisons service in Nigeria is traceable to the colonial regime in 1861
during the time their administration was pre-occupied with the bane of safeguarding their
businesses and also to protect the missionaries (Orakwe, 2018). And by 1861, the then Acting
Governor of Lagos Colony who was also British merchant in Lagos, put a police force of about
25 constables in place; followed in 1863 by the establishment of four (4) courts which included:
a police court meant to resolve minor disputes, a criminal court meant to try more serious cases,
a slave court meant to try cases arising from the efforts to abolish the trade in slaves, and as
well a commercial court meant to resolve disputes arising among the colonial merchants and
traders (Nigeria Prisons Service, 2018). It is no more a new knowledge that a prison is built in
order to take custody of legally detained people, towards identifying causes of their ill- behaviours, and as well retraining them to become more functional in the society (Orakwe,
2018). In other way, the existence of prison in a state is meant to punish, deter, and reform
convicted criminals.
The Nigeria’s Prisons Service (now Nigerian Correctional Services) is headed by the Controller
General of Prisons, and the ‘Services’ is a government agency situated under the Ministry of
Interior and is administered by a body known to be the Civil Defense, Correctional, Fire and
Immigration Services Board (CDCFIB 2019). The modern Nigerian Prison Service (now
Correctional Services) derives its operational powers from the Nigerian Correctional Service
Act (2019). This Act repels CAP P29 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004. The Nigerian
Correctional Service Act (2019) divides the Service into both Custodial and Non–Custodial
Services (Nigerian Correctional Service Act 2019).
The agency has power according to Section 10 of the Act in: taking into custody all persons
legally interned; providing safe, secure and humane custody for inmates; conveying remand
persons to and from courts the motorized formations; identifying the existence and causes of
most of the anti-social behaviours of prisoners; conducting risk and needs assessment aimed at
developing appropriate correctional treatment methods for reformation, rehabilitation and
reintegration; implementing reformation and rehabilitation programmes to enhance the
reintegration of inmates back to the society; initiating their (inmates) behaviours modification
by providing the medical, psychological, spiritual and counseling services for all offenders
including violent extremists; empowering inmates through the deployment of educational and
vocational skills training programmes, and facilitating incentives and income generation
through Custodial Centres, farms and industries; administering borstal and related institutions;
and as well providing support to facilitate the speedy disposal of cases of persons awaiting trials
and administer Prisons farms and industries for this particular purpose and in the process
generate revenue for the government (www.prisons.gov.ng; Nigerian Correctional Service Act
2019).
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Abiodun, T. F., Akinlade, M. T., Onyi, A. B., & Daramola, A. A. (2021). Recurrent Waves of Jailbreak in Nigeria: The Imperatives of Prison Intelligence
and Dynamic Security Strategies in Managing the Nigerian Correctional Facilities. Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal, 8(5). 229-250.
URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.14738/assrj.85.10185
For the past two decades now, the Nigerian correctional centres across the states have
witnessed one form of jail or prison breaks or the other (Ripples Nigeria Report, 2017). Various
prison breaks have taken place at the prisons in: Kogi, Ekiti, Ondo, Minna, Bauchi, Damaturu,
Owerri, among others in the Nigeria. However, despite the various forewarning signals, prison
officials have usually been caught up in one prison break or the other in the country; as the
inmates broke loose after the expiration of the ultimatum and forewarning rolled out to the
Service by the hoodlums. Information on impending riots or prison breaks are usually rolled
out to the prison officials before the incidents occur; and a good number of these “breaks” are
known to the authorities beforehand but they would never take any viable measure to forestall
the phenomena (Jack, 2016). And most of the time, the Prisons Armed Squad usually relay such
break attempts to the Office of the Comptroller General more than a week before the incidents
take place, but the major problem there is that the intelligence reports are frequently swept
under the carpet as a result of corruption that has eaten deep into most of Nigerian institutions
(Ripples Nigeria Report, 2017).
Moreover, the physical environments of Nigerian prison cells are highly disgusting and this look
suffices to give people visiting correctional centres in the country a dread attack. The Nigerian
correctional centres (prisons) are usually overcrowded with the condemned, dying and
awaiting trial inmates; while a number of cells are kept for some wealthy inmates who usually
serve out their terms in “pleasure” (Falayi and Ajaja, 2018). And despite the prisons congestion
across the country, the rich or wealth inmates usually get themselves in conducive prison
spaces or environments – all these attest to some of the reasons the ‘unfavoured’ inmates go
aggressive to ensure they escape from the prison at all cost. By the way, most prisoners hate
living in prison while s significant number of them has accepted their fates because they are
usually subjected to appropriate security measures and unfair treatment – they would try to
escape or disrupt the normal routine of the prisons service (Chris, 2014; Chuks, 2014).
However, above remain the reasons security measures to which prisoners are subjected should
be made minimum and necessary in order to achieve a secure custody. Observations have been
made that numerous illicit items or objects are smuggled into prisons during the various social
visits; and as a result of these problems, this study is conducted to ensure there is consistency
of application of procedural adoption and application of prison intelligence, and dynamic
security in a bid to save the Nigerian prisons from incessant jailbreaks. The study in its
objectives therefore poised to; highlight the series of prison breaks that have taken place in
Nigeria and the various techniques employed by the escapees; interrogate the causal factors of
jailbreaks in the Nigeria; and finally examine the roles of prison intelligence and dynamic
security in containing the menace.
CONCEPTUAL CLARIFICATIONS
Concept of Prison Intelligence
Intelligence has a number of definitions but can be best described to be the predictive, accurate,
relevant and timely hypothesis emanating from objective-driven collection, collation,
evaluation, and value added analysis of all available significant information (Abiodun and
Dahiru, 2020).
Information + Analysis = Intelligence