A Zambian police officer, allegedly intoxicated, released 13 detainees from custody to allow them to celebrate the New Year, according to authorities.
The BBC reported that Detective Inspector Titus Phiri was taken into custody after freeing the suspects from the Leonard Cheelo police station in Lusaka, before fleeing the scene himself.
The detainees, facing charges ranging from assault to robbery and burglary, are now on the loose. A manhunt is underway to capture them.
Police spokesperson Rae Hamoonga said that Phiri, “in a state of intoxication, forcibly seized cell keys” from constable Serah Banda on New Year’s Eve.
“Subsequently, Detective Inspector Phiri unlocked both the male and female cells and instructed the suspects to leave, stating they were free to cross over into the new year,” he said.
“Out of the 15 suspects in custody, 13 escaped. Following the incident, the officer fled the scene.”
Mr Phiri has not yet commented on the allegations.
Reacting to the incident, former presidential spokesperson and lawyer Dickson Jere wrote on Facebook: “I keep laughing each time I picture the scenario – comical! But then, I remembered a similar incident in 1997.”
On New Year’s Eve in 1997, the late and controversial High Court Judge Kabazo Chanda ordered the release of 53 suspects, including some whom the police considered dangerous.
Judge Chanda expressed frustration that these suspects, arrested as far back as 1992, had yet to stand trial.
“Justice delayed, is justice denied,” he said.
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