Adibe Emenyonu in Benin City
The Edo State Chairman of the Subcommittee on Decongestion of Correctional Centres, Justice Efe Ikpomwonba, has said that 114 inmates in Oko Correctional and Benin Correctional Centres were released on ground of amnesty between April and June.
Ikpomwonba, who made this known in a statement in Benin City on yesterday, said the move was done in a bid to decongest the prison.
She said: “On April 22, the Oko Correctional facility had a total of 55 inmates with bailable offences and at the end of April, 21 of them were released.
“Also in May 22, the facility had 64 inmates with bailable offences and at the end of May, 28 inmates were released while in June 2022, the facility had a number of 91inmates with bailable offences as at June 17. However, 15 of them have been released.”
Justice Ikpomwonba who added that the Benin Correctional Centre was not also left out in the decongestion exercise, also added: “In April, the the Benin facility had 66 inmates with bailable offences and 25 of them were released. In May, the facility had 82 inmates with bailable offences and 20 of them were released.
“Also in June, the facility has 100 inmates with bailable offences and that as at on the June 17, five of them were released.”
Giving the summary, Ikpomwonba said that 64 of the inmates were released from the Oko Correctional Centre while 50 others were released from the Benin Correctional Centre, bringing the total number of inmates released to 114 within the month of April to June, 2022.
