Prison officers arrested over Magazine Prison inmate death

A prison jailer and a prison guard have been arrested over the death of an inmate inside the Magazine Prison in Colombo.

Borella Police arrested the two prison officers in connection with the incident, which took place after two remand inmates allegedly attempted to escape from the prison at around 11:00 AM yesterday (April 27).

According to the Department of Prisons, the two inmates and a prison officer were injured during a struggle between the inmates and the officer.

They were admitted to the Welikada Prison Hospital, where one of the inmates later died.

Reports said the two suspects had been arrested and remanded over drug charges. A prison guard had attempted to stop them during the alleged escape attempt.

The Department of Prisons said one suspect died after falling during the incident, while the other suspect and the prison officer were injured.

However, relatives of the deceased suspect have raised suspicion that the death was caused by an assault by prison officers.

The deceased has been identified as a 37-year-old resident of Nawagampura, Colombo 14.

Following the death, investigations are being carried out by Borella Police, the Colombo District Crimes Division, and the Colombo South Division Criminal Investigation Unit.

The investigations are being conducted on the instructions of Inspector General of Police Priyantha Weerasooriya and under the supervision of Deputy Inspector General of Police in charge of the Colombo District, Nishantha Zoysa.

Meanwhile, the Department of Prisons has also launched a separate investigation into the incident under the leadership of an Assistant Superintendent of Prisons.

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