Kano State Chief Judge, Justice Nura Sagir Umar has ordered the release of 35 inmates at Goron Dutse Correction Centre in the state.
The release followed the exercise of Section 1(1) of the ”Criminal Justice Release from Custody Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2007”
A statement by the spokesman of Kano State Judiciary, Baba Jibo Ibrahim on Thursday said their release was announced during a 2 day visit to the center by the Chief Judge
The statement held that the Section empowers him to ”Release of any prison inmate if satisfied that the detention of that person is manifestly unlawful; or that the person detained has been in custody , whether on remand or otherwise for a period longer than the maximum period of imprisonment the person detained could have served had he been convicted of the offence in respect of which he was detained”.
The statement quoted the Chief Judge as saying that the congestion of correctional centres in the country made it imperative for an immediate visit to all correctional facilities in the state to identify and release deserving inmates.
”For those of you whose names came up to regain your freedom, please try to be positive and desist from any form of negativity, ” he told the inmates.
Meanwhile the inmates who were granted freedom while expressing their happiness thanked the Chief Judge for his generosity and promised to sin no more.
