Paris, September 9 (RHC)-- The deputy governor of a prison in northern France has been taken hostage by an inmate, authorities say. Officials in France’s Pas-de-Calais region told AFP on Wednesday that the hostage-taker, identified as Fabrice Boromee, kidnapped Fabrice Bels in the isolation unit of the Vendin-le-Vieil prison.

They also noted that the Boromee, who comes from the French overseas territory of Guadeloupe, was a “particularly dangerous inmate” and was “thought to be armed.” The sources added that regional response teams and security forces were deployed to the scene to “carry out negotiations and a possible intervention.”

Meanwhile, AFP quoted sources from the unions representing prison workers as saying that the hostage-taker’s weapon appeared to be home-made. Boromee, who has been at the jail since May, was considered so dangerous that those in charge of keeping watch over him were given special protection gear, the sources added.

According to the sources, Boromee is “very well-known on the prison circuit,” having already taken people hostage in 2013 in another French jail. Julien Martin, a member of the Workers' Force (FO) Union, also said the inmate’s behavior had improved last month causing prison guards to have their special protection gear taken away.

The Vendin-le-Vieil prison, which is located four miles (6.4 kilometers) northeast of the commune of Lens, opened in 2014 with a capacity of 238 inmates. The jail houses some of France’s most dangerous criminals.