Armed gunmen have open fire on a correctional center in Jos North Local Government Area, Plateau State.

Witnesses say the bandits fired sporadically around the prison premises located along Joseph Gomwalk road, opposite police headquarters.

Some inmates are said to have been freed in the melee while others around the facility have been fatally shot 

Spokesman for the Nigerian Correctional Service, Francis Enobore, confirmed the incident to Peoples Gazette but could not immediately ascertain the level of casualty at the facility.

He promised to revert when he gets a comprehensive report from Jos.

“We can’t hear gunshots anymore but we can hear sirens. People are running back home. My dad is scared that if these people are fugitives, they might run to the bushes to seek refuge and could later regroup to cause more trouble,” a resident near the area who spoke to The Gazette said on conditions of anonymity due to grave security implications.

“A girl who works in our house just got home and she said there’s heavy security presence right now around the premises. People are not allowed to move their cars and she said she saw bodies lying on the floor in the pool of blood, but could not confirm if they’re dead,” the source added.

Sunday’s prison raid comes few days after another village in Miango, Ta’agba was attacked by bandits, leaving 11 people dead.