The Chief Judge of Kogi, Justice Nasir Ajanah, has decried increasing youth population in prison custody over cultism related offences.
Ajanah spoke on Thursday at the Federal Prisons Dekina, while reviewing the warrants of 23 awaiting trial inmates.
According to him, secret cult membership has become a national problem.
“This is a disturbing trend and I hope that very soon, we will get round to solving the problem,” he said.
He said generally, there was an increase in crime rate in the state.
Ajanah said that the situation in the prison with 23 awaiting trial inmates this year was unlike last year when he met only nine of such inmates.
“This shows that there is an increase in the crime rate here.
“This is disturbing, especially against the backdrop that most of those in detention here are those alleged to have committed very serious offence of homicide.’’
Ajanah regretted that he could not release or grant bail to any of the inmates, as the offences were seriousness.
“This is unlike other prisons I have been to where we met some inmates that I had to release because they were detained unjustly.
“I have reviewed cases of 23 awaiting trial inmates and I have not found any of them illegally detained,” he said.
The chief judge commended magistrates in the area for performing creditably.
Mr James Okwute, the officer in charge of the prisons, commended the chief judge for giving priority to prisons’ decongestion.
According to him, the Dekina Prisons with an initial capacity of 34 now have 39 inmates.
Okwute commended magistrates and upper area court judges for helping in decongesting the prisons through discretionary use of alternatives to imprisonments.