Lagos State Government has lamented that the five federal prisons in the state were overstretched with about 5,000 inmates.
The government also complained about the increase in the number of inmates charged for domestic and sexual offences, which revealed that the top three offences in the category were those of defilement which represents 57 per cent, sodomy, 22 per cent, and rape accounting for 18 per cent.
These were contained in the quarterly report of Lagos Criminal Information System, LCIS, issued by the ministry of justice, which indicated that out of 320 police duplicate files received in the last three months, 313 legal advices were issued.
A statement by Deputy Director, Public Affairs of the ministry, Mr. Kayode Oyekanmi, revealed that of the 4,087 capacity of the five federal prisons in the state, actual prison open out was 9,303, while the total inmates enrolled on the LCIS system with complete records including biometrics and photographs was 12,439 as at September 30.
“In the period under review, reports indicate that the federal prison facilities in Lagos State are overstretched, while the state government, through the Advisory Council on Prerogative of Mercy and the judiciary, are working with Lagos State Ministry of Justice to get list of inmates with minor offences for possible consideration.”
