Police officers in the Nigerian capital Abuja (archive image)
Photo: REUTERS
Heavily armed men stormed a prison in southwest Nigeria and freed hundreds of prisoners.
575 inmates were still on the run after the attack on Friday evening, said the prison administration spokesman in Oyo state on Saturday.
In total, more than 800 prisoners escaped from pre-trial detention and around 250 were taken back into custody.
The heavily armed attackers blew up the wall with dynamite after a fight with the guards, the spokesman said.
He did not provide any information about the dead or injured.
The most populous country in Africa is plagued by crime and violence.
Large parts of the country are controlled by criminal groups.
It was the third attack of its kind on a prison in Nigeria this year: in September, an attack on another prison in the central Nigerian state of Kogi freed around 240 prisoners.
In April, more than 1,800 prisoners escaped in an attack on another detention center in the south-east of the country.
tfb / AFP / Reuters