A massive jailbreak has occurred as an inferno broke forth at the notorious Chikurubi Maximum prison in an incident that has seen emotional prisoners fighting off armed prison guards, ZimEye.com can reveal.
Hundreds of blankets and property worth thousands of dollars have been set ablaze as more than 200 prisoners vowed to die “if need be”. Chikurubi, a female and male prison located on the outskirts of Harare, is known for overcrowding and extremely poor sanitary conditions with cells typically measuring 9 metres (30 ft) by 4 metres (13 ft) and there can be as many as 28 prisoners housed in each cell.
“They were being given for their daily food sadza with Royco Usavi mix,” a source told ZimEye.com .
One prisoner has since been shot dead, according to a source at the site although this could not be immediately verified.
The more than 200 rioting prisoners are said to have since taken over the prison as “guards fled the scene”. Armed reinforcements have been called from the army who at the time of writing were seen in lorries heading to the institution, SEE INTERACTIVE MAP –
More to follow as the development unravels….