An investigations has been launched after riots at Perth Prison which led to several inmates setting fire to their cells.
Prison authorities are probing events that led up to the disturbance at the jail which broke out around 8pm on Tuesday and lasted for around an hour.
The Courier understands that some inmates set fire to their cells within an area of the prison, resulting in emergency services being called.
A spokesperson for the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) confirmed the incident had taken place and added that officers from Police Scotland were looking into the matter along with staff from the prison.
She stated the incident lasted for an hour and that it was confined to “one area.”
The SPS spokesperson also stressed no one had been injured as a result of the riots.
On Wednesday she said the SPS had “nothing to add” regarding the incident and, as a result, the prison’s governor, Brenda Stewart, could not comment on the matter.
A Perth Prison insider, who wished to remain anonymous, told The Courier the atmosphere inside the Edinburgh Road jail was “very tense.”
“I wasn’t working on Tuesday evening but I heard there was a bit of bother with some of the prisoners,” he said.
“We’ve had police in here today helping with investigations into the incident.”
A Police Scotland spokesperson said “inquiries were continuing” and added that officers from the force’s Tayside Division were helping the SPS to look into the matter.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service said three appliances had been sent to Perth Prison on Tuesday evening after they were contacted about the riots.
“The fires were out by the time our crews arrived,” she said.
The riot took place on the same day as a blaze broke out at HMP Winchester, in an unrelated incident.
Two inmates were involved in the disturbance at the English prison with firefighters being called to the prison at 2pm on Tuesday.
