The Civil Defence, Correctional, Fire and Immigration Services Board has approved the suspension of seven senior officers and one junior official of the Nigerian Correctional Service over the electrocution of five inmates of the Medium Security Custodial Centre, Ikoyi, Lagos.

This, it said, was to facilitate investigation into the incident, where seven other inmates were injured on Monday.

We learnt that preliminary investigation had indicted the eight personnel for negligence.

A letter signed by the Secretary of the Board, Mallam Hassan Yakmut, stated that the indicted officers were placed on suspension pending “the determination of the Discipline and General Purpose Committee of the Board.”

A statement by the NCS spokesman, Controller of Corrections, Francis Enobore in Abuja on Friday, read, “The Civil Defence, Correctional, Fire and Immigration Services Board has approved the suspension of seven senior and one junior personnel of the Nigerian Correctional Service over the unfortunate electrocution of five inmates of the Medium Security Custodial Centre, Lagos, in order to facilitate unfettered investigation into the sad incident.”

The service had earlier said the cell where the five inmates died was holding 140 persons instead of the 35 it was meant to keep, adding that the custodial centre, built in 1955 for 800 inmates had a population of 3,113 inmates with 2,680 awaiting trial persons.

The Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, during his visit to the facility ordered a probe into the incident and directed that necessary actions be taken to prevent future occurrence.