The prisons department on Tuesday denied allegations that the new Wing 11 at the central prison has security issues after reports surfaced of an inmate being beaten with a padlock.

“We categorically deny the claim that there are security issues on Wing 11. The new wing is operating normally and smoothly, and any problems which may arise from time to time, as in all large facilities, are addressed and repaired immediately,” the department said.

It added that all the equipment and security systems installed on the wing are “operating smoothly”, and that the wing is “adequately staffed”.

The statement comes after multiple sources reported that an inmate had been beaten with a padlock on the wing, with newspaper Phileleftheros reporting that a police source had said an official complaint on the matter is “expected”.

The newspaper added that an inmate had been “brutally beaten by a group of his fellow prisoners”, and that the inmate was “unconscious” when transported to hospital on Sunday.