The Police Command in Bayelsa said ten detainees had escaped from the custody of its Special Anti Robbery Squad (SARS) in Yenagoa on Tuesday morning.
A statement issued by the Command’s Public Relations Officer, DSP Asinim Butswat, on Tuesday in Yenagoa said three of the escapees had been re-arrested.
“The Police Command in Bayelsa wishes to inform the people of the state and the general public that at about 0200hrs, 7th November, 2017, the incident duty officer of Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) while on routine cell check discovered that ten suspects had escaped.
“They escaped through the ceiling of SARS detention facility.
“Policemen immediately cordoned off the SARS detention facility and re-arrested three out of the ten suspects that escaped.
“The profile of the suspects has been circulated to our intelligence sources and efforts have been intensified to re-arrest the remaining suspects.
“The Command urges members of the public not to panic and to volunteer useful information that may assist the Police in arresting the fleeing suspects,” Butswat said.
However, a reliable source had earlier told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that about 42 suspected armed robbers and cultists detained at the SARS facility broke free and escaped.
“The cell holds more than 50 suspects but it is empty, so it is difficult to give an accurate number, but we hear that 42 criminals were being detained,” the source said.(NAN)