A “large number” of the prisoners who escaped from Koutoukalé high-security prison in Niger last Thursday were captured and three killed by the Niger Defense Forces, the Nigerien army said in a statement published Saturday.
The army said searches were ongoing for the remainder of the escaped prisoners. It added that “two AK-47 assault rifles and an M-80 gun were seized” during the operation. The exact number of those who escaped was not provided.
The army further urged the residents to be vigilant.
Anyone with information or seeing suspicious individuals is requested to report them immediately to the police, the statement said.
The prison break had occurred last Thursday with “several dozens of inmates,” which include militants, escaping after a mutiny broke out in the prison.
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