Prison service’s escort unit achieves one year of operations |25 September 2020

Meeting between the superintendent of prisons Raymond St Ange with a number of officers of the escort unit on one year milestone (Photo source: SPS)

● Over a thousand escorts conducted

The public may not be aware that since September 16, 2019, the prison service has been escorting remands awaiting trial and those convicted to court and medical appointments where required.

In the past, the prison service only escorted those convicted while the police escorted remands.

The launch of the escort unit was arrived at following meetings with the Seychelles police and the Office of the Designated Minister, in early August 2019. At those meetings, the police leadership confirmed that they wanted to focus on their core law enforcement operational functions and duties. Noting that they have been supporting the prison with escorts of remands for a number of years, it was time now for the prison to take up this operation.

During the soft launch of the escort services by the prison authority, the Seychelles police continued to render assistance by providing a number of officers from the POTRU to include a transport. Gradually, as the prison escort unit gained its footing, it assumed full operational ability on April 1, 2020. The excellent working relationship between the prison service and the police force ensures that the police stand ready to assist with additional personnel to support the prison escort unit when requested.

“Prior the Seychelles Prison Service would escort inmates with staff who were available to do so and were not part of a specialised unit. However, with the evolution of the prison service it was decided to make ready a special unit that would focus on inmate escorts,” said inspector Shafiq Andrade, officer in charge of the prison service security unit. “Having a focused approach of escorts with officers whose prime task is to escort has reduced the number of incidents dramatically.”

The escort unit comprising some 15 officers among them a number of female staff, have to date escorted one thousand six hundred seventy four (1,674) remands and convicted inmates. Approximately seventy five percent (75%) of those escorts have been to ensure appearance to courts, while the remainder were for medical appointments or other events such as escorting to meet with grieving family at a funeral or seriously ill family member.

“Our escort officers ensure that an inmate or a remand is escorted properly, safely with security in mind. Our team consisting of Seychellois, Nepalese and Tanzanian staff, are diligent, understanding that we need to ensure that minimal contact opportunities occur during the escort. In order to ensure that we remain engaged and perform to the standards required the superintendent of prisons has directed that further specialised training be sought and conducted,” said Inspector George Santache, officer in charge of the prison escort unit.

Past reports have seen inmates or remands trying to receive suspected contraband items from other outside persons while at court or on medical appointment, or escape attempts.

Currently, the prison escort unit reports to the office of the superintendent. Request for remand movements are made by the SPS Bois de Rose detention remand facility under the command of deputy superintendent Samir Ghislain to prison headquarters at Montagne Posée, while requests for convicted inmates are managed through the internal assurance and quality department and records unit, under the command of chief inspector Louisna Neamtu.

The escort unit as well holds regular meetings with the court registrar to address issues where and if they occur and as well to forward plan.

Communique from the Seychelles Prison Service