diff --git a/utils_linux.go b/utils_linux.go
index 85ec3c84..50831614 100644
--- a/utils_linux.go
+++ b/utils_linux.go
@@ -27,8 +27,6 @@ import (
 
 var errEmptyID = errors.New("container id cannot be empty")
 
-var container libcontainer.Container
-
 // loadFactory returns the configured factory instance for execing containers.
 func loadFactory(context *cli.Context) (libcontainer.Factory, error) {
 	root := context.GlobalString("root")