Sri Lanka prison riot kills at least 27

[NewsCaster]

Ishara S.kodikara / AFP - Getty ImagesSri Lankan soldiers stand guard near the three-wheel taxi allegedly used by inmates to escape from the Welika maximum prison in Colombo on Saturday, Nov. 10.By Reuters

Follow @NBCNewsWorldCOLOMBO — At least 27 people were killed and a senior police officer seriously wounded in a gunfight in Sri Lanka's biggest prison that began when police came under fire from inmates, officials and police said on Saturday.

The army brought the violence under control before dawn and freed staff held hostage at the Welikada prison in the capital Colombo, jail officials and military said.


Twenty seven people have been confirmed dead, prisons minister Chandrasiri Gajadeera told parliament.

The violence erupted when officers from the Special Task Force (STF), Sri Lanka's elite police commandos, were searching the jail for drugs and illegal mobile phones.

NBCNews

[KingFemzee]

The inmates must have been watching Scofield's Jailbreak.