At least 13 killed in Honduras prison riot, fire

[News_Editor]

At least 13 killed in Honduras prison riot, fire

2012-03-30 10:03:12 GMT+7 (ICT)

SAN PEDRO SULA, HONDURAS (BNO NEWS) -- At least thirteen inmates were killed on Thursday when a riot and a subsequent fire broke out at a prison in northwestern Honduras, officials said. It comes just months after the world's deadliest prison fire in the country.

The riot broke out at around 11:30 a.m. local time at a prison in San Pedro Sula, the country's industrial capital in the Department of Cortés. Heavy smoke could be seen rising from the facility, and there were reports of shots being fired at the prison until the situation was brought under control.

The riot was triggered by a fight between rival groups, one of them known as 'paisas' (fellow countrymen), which are not linked to any other group operating in Honduras. Red Cross emergency teams arrived shortly after the riot began and transported several inmates from the prison grounds due to intoxication from the fire's smoke.

San Pedro Sula public prosecutor coordinator Marleny Banegas confirmed 13 people were killed, detailing that several of the victims showed knife wounds. One of the casualties was decapitated, and his head was reportedly thrown toward the prison's central offices, Banegas said.

In addition to several people suffering from smoke inhalation, one of the inmates, identified as Félix Antonio Cruz, was wounded after receiving a gunshot wound. He was taken to the Mario Catarino Rivas hospital for treatment, although his condition was not immediately known.

The riot comes less than two months after 361 inmates were killed when a fire broke out at a prison in Comayagua, the capital of the province which carries the same name. It was the world's deadliest ever prison fire. There were a total of 853 inmates at the facility, well above its maximum capacity of 400.

Previously, in May 2004, a total of 107 inmates were killed when a fire broke out at a state prison in the city of San Pedro Sula. Inmates blamed guards for the many deaths because they refused to open the cells as they screamed for help.

And in April 2003, fighting between rival gang members and a subsequent fire left 68 people dead at a prison in the Honduran port city of La Ceiba. A subsequent investigation blamed prison guards and police for most of the deaths, all gang members.

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