SEPT-ILES, Quebec – Quebec's Public Security Department says inmates have taken a female security guard hostage in the basement of a courthouse in a northern town.
Provincial police said Wednesday the hostage was taken Wednesday afternoon in Sept-Iles, about 650 kilometers (403 miles) northeast of Quebec City. Police say they cannot confirm how many convicts are involved.
The courthouse has a detention center in the basement. The building has been evacuated and police have erected a security perimeter nearby.
In 2013, CBC/Radio-Canada reported that the jail was outdated and had an overcrowding problem. A new jail in the remote town was supposed to be operational this spring but has not yet opened.
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