Crossword Genius

Prisoner having to leave by river (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

congo

'river' is the definition.
(I know that Congo is a river)

'prisoner having to leave' is the wordplay.
'prisoner' becomes 'con' (abbreviation for 'convict').
'having' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'to leave' becomes 'go' (to go is to depart or leave).
'con'+'go'='CONGO'

'by' acts as a link.

(Other definitions for congo that I've seen before include "Wide river" , "African river (aka Zaire)" , "Region of central Africa" , "Brazzaville its capital" , "Central African country" .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.
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