KINSHASA: An attempted breakout at the Democratic Republic of Congo's largest and chronically overcrowded prison left at least 129 people dead this week, the interior minister said on Tuesday.
The circumstances surrounding the attempted escape from Makala prison in the capital Kinshasa in the early hours of Monday remain unclear.
But Interior Minister Jacquemain Shabani, in a video statement broadcast to the media on Tuesday, announced a provisional death toll of 129 people.
Among them, “24 people were shot after receiving warnings,” he added.
At least 59 other people were injured and were receiving treatment, he added.
Witnesses said AFP that they had heard gunshots around 2:00 a.m. on Monday and that the gunshots continued for several hours in the area of the prison, a popular and residential neighborhood.
On Monday, police had cordoned off the streets leading to the prison, AFP Journalists present at the scene witnessed the incident.
The interior minister said many people had been crushed or suffocated and several women had been raped, but gave no details about their identities.
On Monday morning, government spokesman Patrick Muyaya said only that security services were on the scene and called on residents “not to panic.”
A few hours later, he told national television that the situation was “under control.”
Makala prison, the largest in the vast Central African nation, has a capacity for 1,500 inmates.
With between 14,000 and 15,000 inmates, it houses approximately ten times the number of prisoners it should house, according to official statistics.
