Inmates At Barclayville Cell Demand Justice By Emmanuel Koffa Grand Kru County

The over thirty inmates housed at the overcrowded withholding cell in Barclayville, Grand Kru County, said they are becoming frustrated and disappointed over their prolong detention as well as the very deprived prison conditions.

The Barclayville withholding cell was constructed to host only 15 inmates at a time, but now, is overcrowded with more than 30 pre-trail detainees.

Many of the inmates are “pretrial detainees,” who are yet to be formally charged or brought before a court, raising significant concerns about the treatments of individuals awaiting trial.

Reports gathered from the Barclayville withholding cell indicates that the cell is overcrowded with the total number of inmates surpassing 30 as of Wednesday, May 24, 2025.

The number of male adults’ pretrial detainees is put at 25. Already, five of the male adults have been sentenced, including one juvenile.

 The detainees have reported facing punitive prison conditions, with limited access to food, sanitation and medical care.

According to the inmates, the situation of the over crowdedness has exacerbated an already dire consequences, resulting in heightened tensions among the inmates. They have therefore raised concerns for their overall well-being.

“We are not animals, but human beings that have rights; not because we are detained,” Exodus Koffa, an inmate stated in an exclusive interview with this newspaper.

Koffa is meanwhile calling for immediate intervention from the government. “Many of us have not even been to court or heard the charges against us. We are pleading for justice to get us out of this inhumane treatment,” another inmate said.

They described the correctional cell, including the police withholding cell as places that are well beyond their intended capacities, with inmates squeezed into small, darkroom cells, often sharing inadequate space together.

Thomas Freeman, who has since been sentenced for 30 years for murder, said conditions in the prison have resulted to disease outbreaks, adding to the desperation felt by detainees.

Freeman also argued that the lack of sufficient correctional facilities and resources, not only violates human rights, but undermines the integrity of the justice system as a whole.

In their pleas, the inmates called on government, humanitarian organizations to intervene by investing in their wellbeing, especially by building more correctional facilities. The idea is to ensure that pretrial detainees receive timely and fair access to court proceedings.

“You can’t just keep people locked up and forget about them,” another inmate remarked. “Some of us deserve to know why we are here, and when will we go home?” Freeman voiced out.