ALBAWABA - More than 120 people were killed on Monday morning while attempting to escape from a jail in the Democratic Republic of the Congo's capital, Kinshasa, according to the minister of security.
In a post on Facebook on Tuesday morning, Jacquemain Shabani stated that 129 people perished and 59 were injured during the breakout attempt at Kinshasa's Makala Prison. 24 people were killed by gunshots, while the others died in a crash during the chaos, stated.
He further said that a fire broke out and burned the prison's administration buildings, register, infirmary, and food depots.
Shabani stated the situation was under control and that investigations were underway. A crisis meeting has been scheduled with the chiefs of the defense and security services. He didn't say how many convicts had fled or attempted to do so.
Witnesses told AFP that they heard a shooting at about 2 a.m. on Monday and that it continued for many hours in the jail area. Daddi Soso, an electrician, claimed he witnessed security cars transporting bodies in the early hours.
Videos circulating on social media showed dead bodies on the ground, damaged prison buildings, and smoke coming out of the facility.
The DRC justice minister, Constant Mutamba, condemned the attempted jailbreak as "premeditated acts of sabotage" and said investigations were ongoing to identify and "severely punish" those who carried it out.
Makala is the largest jail in the country. According to Amnesty International, it was designed to keep 1,500 detainees but had over 12,000 as of October last year, with the majority of them awaiting trial.
