Reported by Ariajegbe Sylvia Esezobor
The Chief Judge of Rivers State, Justice Simeon Chibuzor-Amadi, has released 14 inmates from the Port Harcourt Maximum Security Custodial Centre during a jail delivery exercise that marked the opening of the 2026/2027 legal year, invoking statutory powers to decongest a facility that has long operated far beyond its designed capacity.
The exercise, conducted on Tuesday, September 22, 2026, was carried out pursuant to Section 1 of the Criminal Justice (Release from Custody) (Special Provisions) Act and Section 341 of the Rivers State Administration of Criminal Justice Law Number 7 of 2015. Justice Chibuzor-Amadi said the release was intended to “right certain wrongs and decongest the correctional facility,” noting that the categories of inmates freed included those who had overstayed the number of years prescribed by law if they had been convicted of the crimes they were alleged to have committed, and those whose cases had not progressed through no fault of their own but due to the failure of security agencies or even the judiciary.
The Chief Judge elaborated on the specific circumstances of those released. “Those who have been here for years without being tried, not because of what they have done but because of inability of the police or any of the security agencies to transmit the case file to the Ministry of Justice to vet and deliver their legal advice,” he said. “Those whose files could not be traced by the police or the Ministry of Justice, who have been here for years; they are not to suffer”. The exercise formed part of the activities heralding the 2026/2027 legal year of the Rivers State Judiciary.
The Controller of the Nigerian Correctional Service in Rivers State, Richard Moses-Williams, commended the state judiciary for the intervention, saying the jail delivery would help decongest the custodial centre and improve the management of inmates. The release comes against the backdrop of severe overcrowding at the Port Harcourt facility, which was built to accommodate 1,500 inmates but currently houses more than 2,500. More than 70 per cent of the inmates in the facility are awaiting trial, according to a February 2026 assessment by the National Association of Seadogs, which also raised concerns about the poor condition of the facility, citing lack of electricity, inadequate healthcare services, and obsolete infrastructure. The Rivers State Command of the Nigerian Correctional Service disclosed in September 2026 that over 500 inmates are on death row across the state’s three correctional centres, with more than 3,150 inmates being held in facilities that were designed for far fewer.
Justice Chibuzor-Amadi has consistently used jail delivery exercises to address the systemic failures that leave suspects languishing in custody for years without trial. In July 2026, the Rivers State Judiciary released 23 inmates from correctional centres across the state in the first phase of its 2026 prison decongestion exercise, with 18 freed from the Port Harcourt Correctional Centre and five from the Ahoada Correctional Centre after their cases were reviewed by magistrates. In the 2024/2025 legal year, the Chief Judge released 41 inmates, while magistrates freed 109 others, bringing the total number of inmates released during that legal year to 150. Under his watch, the number of awaiting-trial inmates at the Port Harcourt Correctional Centre dropped significantly from about 4,000 to less than 1,000.
Addressing the freed inmates on Tuesday, the Chief Judge advised them to turn over a new leaf as they returned to society, warning that anyone who returned to the facility for another crime might not have the opportunity of freedom again. He also charged them to shun political thuggery and electoral violence as political activities intensify ahead of the 2027 general elections, reminding them that several youths had been victims of political violence. The warning carries particular weight in Rivers State, which has been a flashpoint for political tension in recent months. In September 2026, the Nigeria Democratic Congress accused the All Progressives Congress and the Benue State Government of sending thugs to disrupt Peter Obi’s convoy, and the killing of an Accord Party chieftain at a motor park in Osun State intensified concerns about political violence ahead of the polls. The Chief Judge’s decision to use the jail delivery exercise as a platform to caution freed inmates against being recruited as political thugs reflects the judiciary’s recognition that the consequences of electoral violence often fall disproportionately on young people who are already familiar with the criminal justice system.
The Chief Judge also cautioned officials of the custodial facility against releasing confidential information about those to be freed to other inmates, in order to reduce the tension associated with such actions. This instruction underscores the sensitivity surrounding jail delivery exercises, where information leaks can create unrest among inmates who are not scheduled for release. The Controller of Corrections, Moses-Williams, described gaol delivery as an important measure in addressing congestion in custodial facilities.
The release of 14 inmates is a modest intervention in a facility that holds more than 2,500 people, but it represents a continuation of a sustained effort by the Rivers State Judiciary to address the systemic delays and administrative failures that have made the Port Harcourt correctional facility a symbol of Nigeria’s dysfunctional criminal justice system. The underlying causes of overcrowding remain: police failure to transmit case files, delays in legal advice from the Ministry of Justice, missing case files, and the sheer volume of cases that overwhelm the courts. Until these structural problems are addressed, jail delivery exercises will continue to function as a necessary but insufficient remedy, releasing a handful of inmates while thousands more remain in custody awaiting a justice system that is too slow to deliver.
For the 14 inmates who walked free on Tuesday, the release represents an opportunity to rebuild their lives. For the judiciary, it is a reminder that the Constitution and the Administration of Criminal Justice Law provide tools to correct the wrongs of a system that too often treats detention as a substitute for justice. As the 2026/2027 legal year begins, the Chief Judge has made clear that he intends to continue using those tools, even as he urged those he freed to become ambassadors of peace rather than recruits for the political violence that threatens to mar the coming election season.
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Reported by Ariajegbe Sylvia Esezobor
The Chief Judge of Rivers State, Justice Simeon Chibuzor-Amadi, has released 14 inmates from the Port Harcourt Maximum Security Custodial Centre during a jail delivery exercise that marked the opening of the 2026/2027 legal year, invoking statutory powers to decongest a facility that has long operated far beyond its designed capacity.
The exercise, conducted on Tuesday, September 22, 2026, was carried out pursuant to Section 1 of the Criminal Justice (Release from Custody) (Special Provisions) Act and Section 341 of the Rivers State Administration of Criminal Justice Law Number 7 of 2015. Justice Chibuzor-Amadi said the release was intended to “right certain wrongs and decongest the correctional facility,” noting that the categories of inmates freed included those who had overstayed the number of years prescribed by law if they had been convicted of the crimes they were alleged to have committed, and those whose cases had not progressed through no fault of their own but due to the failure of security agencies or even the judiciary.
The Chief Judge elaborated on the specific circumstances of those released. “Those who have been here for years without being tried, not because of what they have done but because of inability of the police or any of the security agencies to transmit the case file to the Ministry of Justice to vet and deliver their legal advice,” he said. “Those whose files could not be traced by the police or the Ministry of Justice, who have been here for years; they are not to suffer”. The exercise formed part of the activities heralding the 2026/2027 legal year of the Rivers State Judiciary.
The Controller of the Nigerian Correctional Service in Rivers State, Richard Moses-Williams, commended the state judiciary for the intervention, saying the jail delivery would help decongest the custodial centre and improve the management of inmates. The release comes against the backdrop of severe overcrowding at the Port Harcourt facility, which was built to accommodate 1,500 inmates but currently houses more than 2,500. More than 70 per cent of the inmates in the facility are awaiting trial, according to a February 2026 assessment by the National Association of Seadogs, which also raised concerns about the poor condition of the facility, citing lack of electricity, inadequate healthcare services, and obsolete infrastructure. The Rivers State Command of the Nigerian Correctional Service disclosed in September 2026 that over 500 inmates are on death row across the state’s three correctional centres, with more than 3,150 inmates being held in facilities that were designed for far fewer.
Justice Chibuzor-Amadi has consistently used jail delivery exercises to address the systemic failures that leave suspects languishing in custody for years without trial. In July 2026, the Rivers State Judiciary released 23 inmates from correctional centres across the state in the first phase of its 2026 prison decongestion exercise, with 18 freed from the Port Harcourt Correctional Centre and five from the Ahoada Correctional Centre after their cases were reviewed by magistrates. In the 2024/2025 legal year, the Chief Judge released 41 inmates, while magistrates freed 109 others, bringing the total number of inmates released during that legal year to 150. Under his watch, the number of awaiting-trial inmates at the Port Harcourt Correctional Centre dropped significantly from about 4,000 to less than 1,000.
Addressing the freed inmates on Tuesday, the Chief Judge advised them to turn over a new leaf as they returned to society, warning that anyone who returned to the facility for another crime might not have the opportunity of freedom again. He also charged them to shun political thuggery and electoral violence as political activities intensify ahead of the 2027 general elections, reminding them that several youths had been victims of political violence. The warning carries particular weight in Rivers State, which has been a flashpoint for political tension in recent months. In September 2026, the Nigeria Democratic Congress accused the All Progressives Congress and the Benue State Government of sending thugs to disrupt Peter Obi’s convoy, and the killing of an Accord Party chieftain at a motor park in Osun State intensified concerns about political violence ahead of the polls. The Chief Judge’s decision to use the jail delivery exercise as a platform to caution freed inmates against being recruited as political thugs reflects the judiciary’s recognition that the consequences of electoral violence often fall disproportionately on young people who are already familiar with the criminal justice system.
The Chief Judge also cautioned officials of the custodial facility against releasing confidential information about those to be freed to other inmates, in order to reduce the tension associated with such actions. This instruction underscores the sensitivity surrounding jail delivery exercises, where information leaks can create unrest among inmates who are not scheduled for release. The Controller of Corrections, Moses-Williams, described gaol delivery as an important measure in addressing congestion in custodial facilities.
The release of 14 inmates is a modest intervention in a facility that holds more than 2,500 people, but it represents a continuation of a sustained effort by the Rivers State Judiciary to address the systemic delays and administrative failures that have made the Port Harcourt correctional facility a symbol of Nigeria’s dysfunctional criminal justice system. The underlying causes of overcrowding remain: police failure to transmit case files, delays in legal advice from the Ministry of Justice, missing case files, and the sheer volume of cases that overwhelm the courts. Until these structural problems are addressed, jail delivery exercises will continue to function as a necessary but insufficient remedy, releasing a handful of inmates while thousands more remain in custody awaiting a justice system that is too slow to deliver.
For the 14 inmates who walked free on Tuesday, the release represents an opportunity to rebuild their lives. For the judiciary, it is a reminder that the Constitution and the Administration of Criminal Justice Law provide tools to correct the wrongs of a system that too often treats detention as a substitute for justice. As the 2026/2027 legal year begins, the Chief Judge has made clear that he intends to continue using those tools, even as he urged those he freed to become ambassadors of peace rather than recruits for the political violence that threatens to mar the coming election season.
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✉️ info@stonereportersnews.com | 📘 Facebook: Stone Reporters News | 🐦 X (Twitter): @StoneReportNew | 📸 Instagram: @stonereportersnews
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