Prisons Dept. releases footage of Mahara inmates’ riot

The Department of Prisons has released footage of the unrest that broke out at the Mahara Prison on Sunday (29).

Eleven inmates in total died in the incident while 106 others and two prison officials sustained injuries.

According to reports, 29 of the injured are still under medical care at the Colombo North Teaching Hospital in Ragama.

Earlier today, it was reported that 08 inmates who died during the riot were posthumously tested positive for Covid-19.

In addition, Rapid Antigen Tests carried out on the hospitalized inmates confirmed that 38 of them are positive for the virus.

Unrest at the Mahara Prison broke out on Sunday evening (November 29) when a group of inmates attempted to escape the facility following a conflict with prison officials.

Prison authorities had opened fire to control the situation and a team of Police Special Task Force (STF) personnel was deployed to assist prison authorities.

Subsequently, a massive fire had broken out at the prison after several inmates set fire to the health office, a storage area, and several other places within the prison.

The fire had raged on until 3.00 am on Monday (30) and was completely extinguished with help of 06 fire trucks.

Two prison officials were also held hostage by protesting inmates, however, they were later rescued by the authorities.

As per subsequent revelations, the rioting inmates had also broken into the prison’s medical section and consumed the stored pharmaceuticals including the ones used to treat mental illnesses. Officials said this resulted in more violent conduct among the inmates.