The Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, says 3,906 inmates who escaped from various custodial centres in the country are still at large.
He said this Thursday while speaking during a media briefing organised by the Presidential Communication Media Team at the State House, Abuja.
The minister, who said 4,369 inmates escaped from the centres from 2020 till date, added that only 984 had been recaptured.
He said the biometrics of all custodial inmates in the country had been taken, stressing that this would enable the escapees to be tracked and rearrested while working with the International Police (INTERPOL).
Aregbesola said: “How long can they continue to run from the state? The state is a patient bird. You can run but you can never hide.
“We have their biometrics. Whenever and wherever they appear to transact any business, their cover will be blown.”
The minister said 465 inmates are running various Degree programmes around the country, adding that 85 of them are running postgraduate programmes including four who are doing PhD programmes.
He said 560 inmates had been enrolled for WAEC/NECO examinations while 2,300 were enrolled for Adult Literacy classes in several custodial centres.