Prison crisis in Ecuador: riots kill 21, dozens injured and a police officer raped

Again, violence takes two prisons in Ecuador. So far, the clashes have killed 21 prisoners and injured dozens, including members of the national police. The National Service for Comprehensive Attention to Adults Deprived of Liberty and Young Offenders has assured that the injured could be 57. While the Government Ministry said the figure could be 41. Therefore, the exact figure cannot be confirmed.

For the second time this year, the prisons of Guayas and Cotopaxi, two provinces of Ecuador located 400 and 100 kilometers from Quito respectively, were the scene of a bloody prison riot that claimed the lives of 79 prisoners in February.

But these alterations do not seem accidental. Last week, a man was arrested as he tried to enter Guayaquil prison with rifles, pistols, explosives and ammunition. During the search, police found two assault rifles, three semi-automatic weapons, four grenades and more than a thousand cartridges. Three weeks ago, another man was also arrested with 18 packages he planned to enter the prison with guns, ammunition, food, cigarettes and even a games console.

According to official information, the detainees had mutinied on the “roofs of the pavilions and in the various security checkpoints”. To reinforce the crisis protocols, agents of the elite Ecuadorian police units were present and were received with intense crosses of bullets from the rebel attack positions.

Ecuador has 60 prisons with a capacity of around 30,000 people, but currently there are around 39,000 inmates living there. in the care of some 1,600 prison officers. According to the number of inmates in the prisons, the director of SNAI informed the legislator that at least 4,000 prison guards are needed. Currently a 30% overcrowding in Ecuadorian prisons which results in a notable reduction in the space available for the coexistence of persons deprived of their liberty.

The National Comprehensive Care Service also revealed in a statement that 8 inmates of Guayas prison, one of the largest prisons in the country, located in Guayaquil, three police officers and a detained security officer were injured. In Latacunga prison, capital of Cotopaxi, riots were recorded at the same time which left until now a balance of 13 deceased inmates, according to a report released by the Ecuadorian prosecutor’s office.

In Cotopaxi prison, the reconquest of 66 inmates in freedom was reported. The national police and the armed forces worked together to bring these prisoners back to their quarters.

The Minister of Defense has called an extraordinary session of the security cabinet with the intention of establishing strategic actions to contain the riots. The sectoral cabinet is made up of delegates from the Ministry of Government, the Chancellery of the Republic, the National Service for Risks and Emergencies, the Strategic Intelligence Center and the National Service for Integral Attention.

The Government Ministry has confirmed the news of the rape of a police officer during riots recorded in the prisons. The attack took place inside one of the maximum security lodges in Cotopaxi province. The woman was doing work to contain the violence and was allegedly assaulted by one of the prison guards. Her companions rescued her and took her to the hospital for treatment. The government ministry condemned the incident and announced legal actions to punish those responsible.

President Guillermo Lasso and government minister Alexandra Vela will make statements from the Cotopaxi government this afternoon.

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