Heavily armed gunmen stormed a jail in Nigeria's central Kogi state overnight, freeing scores of inmates, a prison spokesman said Monday. Francis Enobore, the spokesperson for the Nigeria Correction Service, said in a statement on Monday the attackers broke into the jail in Kabba town of Kogi state on Sunday night after a fierce gun battle with the guards and forcefully released about 240 inmates, according to the international media reports.

As of the time of the attack, 294 inmates were reportedly in custody out of which 224 were pre-trial detainees and 70 convicted inmates, he said. He said local law enforcement agencies have been lawfully empowered to use all necessary means to arrest and bring the fleeing inmates to justice, adding that some escapees had voluntarily returned to the facility as of Monday morning.

Minister of Interior Rauf Aregbesola said in a separate statement on Monday the gunmen who attacked the facility used explosives to destroy three sides of the perimeter fence, allowing the inmates to escape. "We shall leave no stone unturned to bring them back to custody. We are also putting INTERPOL on notice with their details, in case any of them attempts to flee outside our shores," Aregbesola said, noting that escaping from lawful custody is a serious criminal offense.

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