ABUJA — Three survivors have given harrowing accounts of how Nigerian prison guards sprayed an unidentified substance into a crowded detention cell, causing dozens of deaths, and then locked the doors from the outside, ignoring cries for help from inside.
The incident, which occurred at an undisclosed detention facility, has drawn attention to the conditions inside Nigeria's prison system and the circumstances surrounding the fatalities. According to reports from Business News Nigeria, the guards released the chemical agent into a cell holding numerous detainees, many of whom were teenagers working in arduous conditions.
The survivors, whose identities have not been publicly disclosed, described a chaotic and terrifying scene. They recounted that after the substance was sprayed, the cell doors were locked from the outside, trapping those inside. As the effects of the unknown chemical took hold, detainees began dying one after another. The survivors said they heard cries for help from fellow inmates but were unable to assist as they were also affected by the substance.
The Business Day report, which first detailed the survivors' accounts, states that the 37 deaths included many teenagers who were working in what were described as arduous conditions. The exact nature of the work these young detainees were performing and the relationship between their detention and the broader detention facility operations remain subjects of investigation.
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention has been monitoring the situation, though the specific connection between this incident and any public health alerts remains unclear. The NCDC announced enhanced screening measures for travellers from countries with active disease transmission, but officials have not linked this to the detention facility deaths.
Human rights observers and legal experts have called for an immediate independent investigation into the circumstances of the deaths. The absence of transparency regarding the identity of the facility, the composition of the sprayed substance, and the chain of command responsible for the guards' actions has fueled concerns about accountability within the Nigerian correctional system.
As of now, no official statement has been released by the Nigerian Correctional Service confirming the details provided by the survivors. The families of the deceased have been left without answers, and the surviving detainees are reportedly receiving medical attention while the investigation, if any, proceeds behind closed doors.
The incident underscores the broader challenges facing Nigeria's prison infrastructure, including overcrowding, limited medical resources, and reports of guard misconduct. Without a transparent investigation, the full circumstances of that night may remain unknown, leaving many questions about what truly happened in that crowded cell and who is responsible for the loss of life.