Ecuador to pardon thousands after 118 die in worst-ever prison riot
- The government aims to prioritise women, the elderly, and disabled and terminally ill inmates in an attempt to relieve overcrowding in detention centres
- The country’s jails hold some 39,000 prisoners, and have seen a series of violent incidents this year
Ecuador is planning to pardon up to 2,000 inmates to relieve overcrowding at its detention centres after 118 inmates died and a further 79 were injured in the country’s worst-ever prison riot earlier this week, an official said on Friday.
Bolivar Garzon, the director of the South American country’s SNAI prison authority, said the government aimed to prioritise the elderly, women, and prisoners with disabilities and terminal illnesses in the wake of the clashes on Tuesday at the Penitenciaria del Litoral in the southern city of Guayaquil.
The country’s prisons are currently home to some 39,000 inmates, Garzon added.
Garzon said the riot, the latest in a wave of prison violence in the Andean country, was sparked by “a battle for control by organised crime groups”. Riots left 79 dead in February and 22 in July of this year.
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Police stop slaughter in Ecuador prison after rioting and gang massacre kills at least 118 inmates
Officials say gangs have alliances with transnational criminal groups and are battling over drug trafficking routes.