MEXICO: As drug gang violence penetrates jails in the northern Mexican state of Tamaulipas, embattled authorities promise a full investigation into the latest prison riot that left dozens of inmates killed

Record ID: 261079

  • Title: MEXICO: As drug gang violence penetrates jails in the northern Mexican state of Tamaulipas, embattled authorities promise a full investigation into the latest prison riot that left dozens of inmates killed
  • Date: 7th January 2012
  • Summary: ALTAMIRA, TAMAULIPAS, MEXICO (JANUARY 05, 2011) (ORIGINALLY 4:3) (REUTERS) SECURITY CHECKPOINT AT PRISON SIGN WITH PRISON RULES ENTRANCE TO PRISON OFFICES VARIOUS OF FAMILY AND FRIENDS OF VICTIMS LEAVING PRISON GUARDS ON WATCH AT PRISON ARMY GUARDING PRISON (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) RELATIVE OF PRISON INMATE, SONIA SAYING "At night I saw the news and I arrived and now he is ok. (INTERVIEWER: How did you find the prison?) It's very quiet, there is no big thing happening its very quiet." PRISON GROUNDS VARIOUS OF MILITARY AT PRISON GROUNDS (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) GENERAL SECRETARY OF THE TAMAULIPAS STATE GOVERNMENT, MORELOS JAIME CARISECO GOMEZ SAYING "We regret the unfortunate loss of 31 lives from this riot. This is the regrettable result. There are 13 people who are under investigation for being co-participants in these homicides. Some of the people being investigated suffered injuries as a result of their actions." ENTRANCE TO PRISON POLICE ON DUTY AT PRISON VARIOUS OF POLICE LEAVING PRISON
  • Embargoed: 22nd January 2012 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Mexico, Mexico
  • Country: Mexico
  • Topics: Crime
  • Reuters ID: LVA4B4WCGCXIIWJ9X1Z952JQTA44
  • Story Text: One day after deadly clashes between rival gangs inside a prison in northern Mexico left 31 inmates dead on Wednesday (January 04), relative calm has returned to the jail's grounds as soldiers move in and frantic relatives converge on the site for news of loved ones.
    Clashes between prisoners wielding knives and home-made weapons started around midday and were controlled several hours later in Altamira, Tamaulipas, on Mexico's Gulf coast.
    As the latest violent incident erupted inside one of the country's overcrowded jails, many of the families and relatives of prisoners got news of the violence not from authorities but from television news bulletins.
    "At night I saw the news and I arrived and now he is ok. (INTERVIEWER: How did you find the prison?) It's very quiet, there is no big thing happening its very quiet," said Sonia, who is related to an inmate.
    Embattled authorities in the drug-ravaged state of Tamaulipas have launched a thorough investigation into the most violent prison riot of the year so far. Thirteen of the other inmates wounded in the fighting are currently being questioned over the killings by detectives.
    "We regret the unfortunate loss of 31 lives from this riot. This is the regrettable result. There are 13 people who are under investigation for being co-participants in these homicides. Some of the people being investigated suffered injuries as a result of their actions," said Tamaulipas state government General Secretary Morelos Jaime Cariseco Gomez.
    Powerful drug cartels are fighting for control of smuggling routes along the U.S.-Mexico border and rivalries often spread into the jail system, where prisoners held on federal drug charges are mixed with common criminals.
    Last October, twenty inmates died in a prison fight at another jail in Tamaulipas and in July, 17 inmates were killed in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico's most violent city, across from El Paso, Texas.
    More than 46,000 people have died in Mexico in the past five years since President Felipe Calderon launched a frontal attack on drug gangs. Packed and inefficient prisons often suffer from corruption and mass escapes.
    Violence exploded in Tamaulipas state after the Zetas gang broke away from the Gulf cartel and began battling their former employers for turf.
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