Ecuador Officials: Prison Riot Death Toll Climbs to 79 breitbart.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from breitbart.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
26 Feb 2021
The number of inmates killed in prison riots in Ecuador this week rose to 79 Wednesday, government officials confirmed.
Ecuador’s national prison agency (SNAI) reported 37 inmates were killed in two prison riots in the city of Guayaquil, 34 were killed in a prison riot in Cuenca, and 8 were killed in a prison riot in Latacunga. All four prison riots were connected to an intra-prison power struggle between rival gangs, according to Ecuadorian government officials.
Ecuador’s federal government deployed hundreds of police officers and military personnel to four prisons on February 23 after riots sparked within the facilities’ maximum security wings on the night of February 22. The maximum-security wings of Ecuadorian prisons primarily house inmates linked to serious crimes such as killings, drug trafficking, and extortion.