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Former prison guard sues state over out-of-control prison riot

A prison officer caught up in Victoria’s worst jail riot says he feared he’d never see his family again and is now suing the state.

Matt Kent is battling post-traumatic stress disorder after he was threatened during the 15-hour Ravenhall Riot in June 2015, sparked by the introduction of a smoking ban.

“It was just absolute out-of-control,” Mr Kent said.

Former prison officer Matt Kent. Picture: 7 News
Former prison officer Matt Kent. Picture: 7 News

“I saw prisoners smashing through the glass doors and they had steel posts.

“We weren’t riot trained. We never had any training for any riot.”

Footage from inside the riot. Picture: 7 News
Footage from inside the riot. Picture: 7 News
Footage from inside the riot. Picture: 7 News
Footage from inside the riot. Picture: 7 News

Mr Kent was trapped inside the prison for 11 hours after officers were ordered back in, unarmed and undefended to quell the violence.

“I thought of my daughters and I thought ‘What did I say to them’ as the last sort of thing you do,” he said.

Mr Kent is suing the state. Picture: 7 News
Mr Kent is suing the state. Picture: 7 News

The prisoners all but destroyed the metropolitan remand centre causing $12 million damage.

The riot has left Mr Kent now on Workcover.

The prisoners caused $12m damage. Picture: 7 News
The prisoners caused $12m damage. Picture: 7 News

“This was something that was preventable and should never have happened in the workplace,” he said.

On top of Workcover claims from 29 prison officers, the Department of Justice is facing four criminal charges of breaching health and safety laws.

“(Matt’s) job was to protect us as a society but at a time when he needed the protection, it wasn’t afforded to him,” Sine Lawyers Stuart Le Grand said.

The riot was sparked over a cigarette ban. Picture: 7 News
The riot was sparked over a cigarette ban. Picture: 7 News

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