New massacre in Ecuadorian prison: at least 20 dead and 5 mutilated

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – A new bloodbath has occurred in one of Ecuador’s prisons. In the early hours of last Sunday, Centro de Privación de la Libertad N.1, known as the Turi prison, was the scene of shootings, murders and beheadings. According to the latest official data, 20 prisoners were killed, five wounded and five seriously wounded in the massacre. However, it is believed that the number of victims could be higher.

Since the shooting began, dozens of relatives of prisoners serving sentences in Turi have come outside the prison to learn about the condition of their loved ones. The families spent more than 15 hours at a stretch at the scene until the first official information about the dead was released.

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As with last year’s prison massacres, unofficial sources confirmed that the Turi riot had been known for a week. As of 4:00 a.m. Sunday, authorities have established a unified command post to control the violence in the prison. Even the Air Force moved more uniformed personnel to support the 800 police and military personnel who were in the prison. Turi Prison is under the control of one of the largest gangs in the country: Los Lobos.

Los Lobos is Ecuador’s second largest mega-gang. An estimated 8,000 prisoners belong to the gang. At Turi Prison, Los Lobos rule within the prison with 1,600 inmates.

According to Interior Minister Patricio Carrillo, the violence inside the prison occurred because there was a rebellion against “one of the criminal cells,” which he declined to name, but which would be Los Lobos, who are believed to have clashed with smaller gangs inside the prison. Authorities claim that there is a power struggle in Turi Prison. According to other unofficial sources, inmates in the maximum security wing disagree with a possible transfer, which is why clashes have occurred between the maximum security and minimum security wings. Carrillo also reported that thanks to the use of drones, it was determined that the detainees were carrying rifles.

The IACHR has already warned in its recent report on Ecuador’s prisons that the prison system is riddled with corruption and controlled by criminal gangs. For these reasons, the importation of high-caliber weapons into prisons is facilitated.

Prison violence also affects inmates who do not belong to gangs or try to stay out of the conflict. On Sunday afternoon, a harrowing scene occurred in Turi. Several inmates climbed onto the roofs of the prison waving white scarves like flags. They shouted for help. Police dispersed them with tear gas while families pleaded to “do something.” According to some newspaper reports, the prisoners’ pleas did not stop since the riots began: “Lord, please help us, save us, Lord Jesus Christ,” was heard from some of them. Others said, “Help, my sub (as the men in uniform are commonly called)! We are not going to escape. We want to save our lives.

On the night of April 3, almost 24 hours after the clashes began, Minister Carrillo announced that “the deprivation center is under control” and announced that about 90 people who were in the departments involved in the violence had been isolated. The minister also assured that the National Police will conduct searches to “clean” the prison of weapons and other illegal items. “So that we hand over a center in better condition and it receives the necessary reinforcement within the first 48 hours so that it can be better managed and absolutely free of weapons,” Carrillo said.

The Secretary for Human Rights, Bernarda Ordóñez, assured that the state department she heads will provide psychological assistance to the families of detainees who were victims of the massacre. Ordóñez also announced that the state will donate coffins for the murdered inmates and cover all costs for autopsies and other legal protocols.

More than 315 inmates have already been killed in prison bloodbaths in 2021. Authorities say the violence is due to infighting between criminal gangs that control the prisons and are linked to drug trafficking. At the same time, street violence has doubled in the first months of 2022, as have drug seizures. Security and the rehabilitation of the prison system are a major concern for the government of Guillermo Lasso, who will take power for a year in May.