KINSHASA: An attempted jailbreak in Congo’s main prison left 129 people dead, including some who were shot and others who died in a stampede at the overcrowded facility, authorities said Tuesday. Activists alleged the death toll was higher but did not provide a figure.
A provisional assessment showed that 24 inmates were fatally shot by “warning” shots fired by guards as they tried to escape from the Makala Central Prison in the capital of Kinshasa early on Monday, Congolese interior minister Jacquemin Shabani said on X.”There are also 59 injured people taken into care by the government, as well as some cases of women raped,” he said, adding that order has now been restored at the prison. The prison holds both male and female inmates. It was not known if all 129 fatalities were inmates.
A provisional assessment showed that 24 inmates were fatally shot by “warning” shots fired by guards as they tried to escape from the Makala Central Prison in the capital of Kinshasa early on Monday, Congolese interior minister Jacquemin Shabani said on X.”There are also 59 injured people taken into care by the government, as well as some cases of women raped,” he said, adding that order has now been restored at the prison. The prison holds both male and female inmates. It was not known if all 129 fatalities were inmates.