THE Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) has sanctioned 147 of its personnel over various acts of misconduct, including complicity in contraband trafficking within custodial centres across the country.
News Point Nigeria reports that the Controller-General of Corrections, Sylvester Nwakuche, disclosed this on Tuesday in Abuja during the destruction of contraband items recovered from correctional facilities nationwide.
As part of the crackdown, the NCoS also destroyed 1,167 mobile phones, including iPhones, Android devices, button phones, and other prohibited gadgets smuggled into custodial centres.
The destruction exercise took place at the service headquarters in Abuja, where Nwakuche personally supervised the burning of the seized items.
Speaking during the exercise, the Controller-General said the action sends a strong signal that the service is determined to confront and eliminate all threats to the security, order, and integrity of correctional facilities across the country.
According to him, the NCoS remains committed to the ongoing reforms within the service and would continue to ensure that acts of indiscipline, sabotage, complicity, and other infractions are met with appropriate sanctions.
Speaking after the destruction of the contraband items, Nwakuche described the recovered materials as prohibited items intercepted from custodial centres within the last eight months.
“These include mobile phones, SIM cards, and other unauthorised materials. Their presence within our facilities is unacceptable. They compromise security, disrupt discipline, and create channels through which criminal activities are sustained from within custody,” he said.
The Controller-General further disclosed that cash amounting to N2,569,000, allegedly smuggled and trafficked within the facilities, was confiscated during operations and paid into government coffers in line with existing financial regulations.
“Smuggled and trafficked cash totaling N2,569,000 confiscated from inmates in the course of these operations has been duly paid into the appropriate government treasury in line with extant financial regulations,” he stated.
Nwakuche reiterated that his administration’s policy of zero tolerance for indiscipline and misconduct remains fully in force.
He warned that any personnel found engaging in contraband trafficking or aiding such activities would face severe consequences, including dismissal from service.
“Let me state clearly: the trafficking of contraband into our custodial centres cannot occur without some level of internal compromise,” he said.
“Any officer who aids, ignores, or facilitates this act is in direct violation of their oath and a threat to the integrity of this Service. Anyone found culpable will be visited with the full weight of the law, as others before them have already experienced. Be warned.”