Inside Namibia’s prison gangs

ILENI NANDJATO Former inmates have revealed a world run by brutal prison gangs, forced sodomy and brutality, with its own language, rites and oral traditions.So-called Number gangs, made infamous by continually emerging stories from South African jails, also operate in Namibian prisons, former inmates revealed in interviews with Namibian Sun.They said sex among inmates happens on a daily basis and condoms not being distributed in prisons is a critical issue."Voluntary sex is happening in prison, especially in exchange for material needs and food, because some offenders don’t get family visits and therefore they have nowhere to find basic needs such as cosmetics and clothes,” a former inmate said."Forced sex is also taking place, but due to the societal perceptions that a man is man and cannot be raped, this makes most victims to remain silent until really exhausted, and the issue of HIV is real in this regard.”Questions on gang activity sent to Namibian Correctional Service (NCS) spokesperson Laimi Hainghumbi went unanswered.The former inmates also lifted the veil on how newcomers are forced to join various prison gangs operating within correctional facilities to survive prison life.All the former inmates spoke on condition of anonymity.They said the 26, 27, 28, Big Five and Air Force prison gangs run the country’s correctional facilities and control what happens inside prison."There is the 28 gang responsible for sodomy, the 27 gang is responsible for knives and other illegal contraband, the 26 gang is responsible for money, the Big Five is responsible for collecting information and the Air Force is responsible for escapes. All these gangs are formed to fulfil different needs of inmates in the prison environment and they help each other," another former inmate said."Joining a gang is voluntary, but sometimes it's circumstantial. New prisoners may join a gang voluntarily in order to reign supreme or to smuggle or make others to join.“Some join because they are scared to be victimised, some join because they need protection from other inmates, some join because they want to obtain food, cosmetics and clothes.” The initiation rites of the gangs include learning hand signs and gang language, the former inmate continued.He said gangs have their own language that plays an important role in everyday communication. “Only gang members are fluent in this language and it's often dynamic. Old members of the gang who are coming into prison can easily identify other gang members through such language and hand signs.”Each gang has a leader, and if the leader dies, he is replaced according to the power hierarchy within the gang.The power dynamics also determine promotion."Gang members are given difficult tasks to complete (to stab or kill wardens or members of other gangs). If they successfully complete such tasks, then they are promoted.”He said gang members can also collaborate with other gangs to get knives to stab ‘misbehaving’ members of their own gang or correctional officers.There were also claims that some female correctional officers are involved in love affairs with offenders.These love affairs may have started before the inmate came to prison or after their incarceration.The former inmate said once released from prison, a prison gang member often links up with street gangs, because most street gangs emanate from the prison gang subculture."The way prisoners import gang culture by bringing contraband into prison is the way they export that gang culture into the streets for entirely the same reason: To adapt to the circumstances of street culture and satisfy their material needs."Shocking glimpseA frightening glimpse into Namibian prison life came via Judge Gerhard Maritz's judgment in a case that saw prisoners suing the State for being beaten up in prison gang violence.In the judgment delivered in 2008, Maritz said: “Sadly, the harsh realities of life in the captive environment of prisons too often produce a different result. This is especially true in correctional facilities where the pervasive subculture of prison gangs lures prisoners, under the guise of 'protection', even further into the darker reaches of criminal conduct – often violent, as the disturbing facts of this case evidence."He also mentions by name the 26, 27 and 28 prison gangs, who between them dominate most jails both in Namibia and South Africa.According to various exposés on prison gangs, the 26s are responsible for getting cash. They are associated with cunning and obtaining goods by theft and fraud. If you want to join this gang, you must prove that you’re a thief.The 27s are the law-keepers. To join the gang, you must stab someone in prison.The 28s are the senior gang and are distinguished by their organised system of ‘wyfies’ (coerced sex partners). If you want to climb the 28’s ranks, you have two choices: Sodomising other prisoners or stabbing warders.Former warder speaks outThe revelations by the former inmates corroborate the recent utterances of a former prison warder, who claimed late last year that correctional service officers smuggle drugs, knives and cellphones into prisons.Jackson Rungondo, who fled Namibia after allegedly being threatened by prison and street gangs involved in the lucrative drug trade run inside Namibia's prisons, said he is among the young officers who fell into the trap of smuggling contraband into prison.Rungondo is currently seeking asylum in Europe after resigning from correctional services, where he was involved in smuggling in contraband for inmates at the Oluno correctional facility while working there for three years.Last October, Hainghumbi confirmed that since March 2018, 13 cases of correctional services officers smuggling contraband into the Windhoek, Gobabis, Oluno, Walvis Bay, Hardap and Kavango West (Elizabeth Nepemba) correctional facilities had been reported.Rungondo told Namibian Sun that prison gangs operate in all 13 correctional facilities across the country.

Inside Namibia’s prison gangs

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Namibian Sun 2025-04-18

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Inside Namibia’s prison gangs

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Namibian Sun 2025-04-18

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