The Kuje medium prison facility came under attack about 10:20 pm when what was suspected to be a high caliber bomb went off followed by two more explosions and the ensuing sporadic gunfire that sent people scampering for safety.
The Kuje Correctional Center has had a history of terrorists launching attacks to free colleagues detained there or serving prison sentence.
A staff of the prison reportedly confirmed the attack saying the attackers came from the back of the prison.
A security report issued earlier had alerted the prison officials of possible attacks of the medium prison.