The Chief Judge of Oyo State, Justice Munta Abimbola, on Wednesday freed 38 inmates awaiting trial at the Abolongo prison in Oyo town.
Abimbola, accompanied by other members of the committee on Administration of Criminal Justice Law, ordered the release of the inmates in exercise of his duties as chairman of the committee in the state.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that most of the inmates were released on health grounds while others gained freedom because they had spent between four and seven years in detention without trial.
NAN also reports that the committee had on Tuesday visited Agodi prison in Ibadan and also released 51 inmates.
Abimbola said the inmates released on compassionate ground, were advised to turn a new leaf in order to be useful to their families and Nigeria in general.
He also urged security agents and the Directorate of Public Prosecution (DPP) to have the fear of God in discharging their duties, advising them them to stop detaining suspects for years without trial.
Abimbola promised to reposition the judiciary in the state for effective and speedy dispensation of justice.
Earlier, the Controller of Prisons, Oyo State Command, Akinrujomu Tosin, said that most of the inmates in Abolongo prisons had become sick from prolonged imprisonment without trial.
Tosin lamented that the 160-capacity prison currently houses about 456 inmates, with 364 of them on awaiting trial list while 92 had been convicted.(NAN)