RIO DE JANEIRO -- A prison in Brazil placed stuffed puppets wearing guard uniforms on watch towers to keep an eye on the prisoners, according to reports on Friday.

A judge on a routine check of the prison discovered the practise in the CDP prison in the city of Taubate, which is located in the state of Sao Paulo, DPA reported.

A spokesman for the prison's warden apologized for the use of the "dummy" guards in a country which has experienced a series of prisoner outbreaks in recent years.

A federal prison system spokesman said the 1.5-meter dolls were not standing guard at other Brazilian prisons, adding authorities will investigate the case that was limited to the CDP facility. "It must be some kind of bad joke," Luiz Ribeiro said. "Those responsible will be severely punished.