Prison
Chad army officers sentenced to prison for drug trafficking
Chadian army officers and intelligence officials were sentenced on Friday to up to 10 years in prison for drug trafficking, the state prosecutor and their lawyer told AFP. In January, a vehicle carrying 246 cartons of the opiate painkiller Tramadol, with an estimated value of 12.3 billion CFA francs (18.8 million euros, $21 million), was seized on its way to neighbouring Libya, a judicial source said. An army general, two colonels and a head of the National Security Agency were among 10 people sentenced in the capital N’Djamena. “Of the 11 defendants, six were sentenced to 10 years in prison and four to five years in prison, and one was released,” prosecutor Youssouf Tom told AFP. Those sentenced were also ordered to pay between $25,000 and $50,000, the prosecutor said. “The judge followed...
Eight inmates killed in Mexico prison fight
Eight inmates died after a brawl broke out in the high-security Mexican prison from which infamous drug trafficker “El Chapo” made his first escape, officials said Friday. The fight began after the end of a baseball match between detainees at the Puente Grande jail near Guadalajara in the western state of Jalisco. A small number of prisoners suddenly attacked another group, prison director Jose Antonio Perez said. The cause of the brawl was not known, he added. Several wounded inmates were taken to different hospitals with one individual dying during the transfer, authorities said. Five detainees suspected of participating in the deadly scuffle will be questioned by the prosecutor’s office. The top security prison was also where Joaquin Guzman, known as “El Chapo”, in 2001 made the first o...
12 found dead in Burkina jail were ‘executed’ – relatives
File Photo Relatives of 12 people held for “suspected acts of terrorism” and found dead in their prison cells earlier this month, accused the Burkina Faso security forces of having executed them. The 12 men, among 25 arrested on the same charges, were found dead in their cells at Tanwalbougou, in the east of the country, the local prosecutor announced on May 13. The local gendarmerie has already launched an investigation into their deaths. “All the people were executed in a systematic manner,” said Aziz Diallo on Monday. Diallo’s cousin, 34-year-old Abdoulaye Barry, was one of those who died. “All the witnesses at the cemetery (where the bodies were initially buried) were of the opinion that they had been executed,” he added. “My cousin was executed with a bullet in the head,” said Diallo,...
Egypt editor detained outside Cairo jail
Egyptian security services on Sunday detained the editor-in-chief of prominent independent news outlet Mada Masr, its lawyer said, the latest in a crackdown against journalists. Lina Attallah was arrested outside Cairo’s Tora prison as she was interviewing rights activist Laila Soueif, mother of jailed activist Alaa Abdel Fattah who recently began a hunger strike. “The prison security guards asked Attallah to show her identification card and later called her in for an investigation that lasted three hours,” lawyer Hassan al-Azhari told AFP. He said she was later taken a police station and was expected to appear before the prosecution Monday morning, adding the reason for her arrest and charges remained unclear. Later on Sunday, Mada Masr tweeted that the prosecution ordered Attallah’s rele...
Coronavirus: They’re treated like prisoners – Dubai returnees
Some Nigerians recently evacuated from Dubai, United Arab Emirates, have stated that they are being treated like prisoners. They told newsmen that the hotel where they are being quarantined in Lagos is surrounded by soldiers who do not allow them to even get fresh air or receive some sunlight within the compound. One of them, who wished to remain anonymous for fear of being victimized, said, “Sincerely, we have not had it good since we returned from Dubai. We all tested negative for COVID-19 but we are being treated as if we have the disease. “We have been here for three days now but we have not been allowed to even breathe fresh air or even feel sunlight on our skin. It is as if we are in prison. Even the food we are being given is not good at all. We are just managing it.” Another evacue...
Activists press Morroco on fate of 39 political prisoners
Associated Press The fate of 39 Saharawi Political Prisoners in Moroccan jail have become the focus of a new regional campaign from African activists who are asking King Mohammed VI of Morocco to release the men for fear of their exposure to the coronavirus disease. The Movement for the Liberation of Western Sahara, (NMLWS) issued a statement on Wednesday in Abuja through its Nigerian coordinator, Oladipo Fasina, a philosophy professor and noted advocate for academic freedom. According to the statement, the Saharawi prisoners, held for seeking independence for Africa’s last colony, “are in grave danger of contracting the coronavirus as a result of their underlying health conditions resulting from extreme torture and hunger strike they have undergone as prisoners.” Mr Fasina said, “this arb...
