Soldiers and police officers broke into the Sierra Leonean capital’s main ammunition stores at the Wilberforce Barracks on Sunday and took away heavy weapons in an attempt to oust President Julius Maada Bio.

Reports said the coup plotters fired shots at the presidential lodge, where Mr Bio is heavily guarded.

They further attacked the Freetown Central Prison, also known as Pandema Road Prison, and freed the inmates, many of whom had been locked up for several years without trial, including political prisoners.

The government, in a statement, announced a nationwide curfew after the attack on the armoury. It said the military had controlled the situation and rebuffed the assailants.

Mr Bio, on his X  account, praised the security forces for repelling the attack, adding that calm had been restored.

The country’s interior minister, David Taluva, also stated that the assailants attacked a police barracks after running out of ammunition and had seized more arms from police officers.

One of the coupists in military fatigue before driving off was quoted as saying, “We’ll clean this society. We know what we are up to. We are not after any ordinary civilians who should go about their normal business.”

Meanwhile, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the United States Embassy in the country have condemned the attempt by the coupists to “acquire arms and disturb constitutional order” in the country, adding that the action was not justified.

The president was re-elected in June, but the main opposition candidate rejected the result.