Bed bugs, or chinks as they are called locally, have overrun eight holding cells at Central Police Station.
As a result, the prisoners who come from HMP Dodds each day are now forced to stay on the bus until the last one has appeared before the presiding magistrate on any given day.
The NATION understands the outbreak of chinks was noticed last Friday, and prison officials were only made aware of the situation when they came with Monday’s list of inmates who were scheduled to appear in court.
A source close to the situation said it was a cause for concern to prison officers, as it was a violation of the inmates’ constitutional rights to have them shackled in the bus for such a lengthy period of time.
The source also said he was told it had been brought to the relevant authorities’ attention, and it was “currently being dealt with” as a matter of urgency, as it placed a strain on officers to be marshalling prisoners to and from the courts, as well as to the bathrooms which are located on the other side of the courtyard. (RA)
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