Police say 13 inmates and one prison guard have been killed and another 14 people injured in clashes between rival gangs in a jail in Ecuador. People living near the prison in the southwestern city of Machala reported hearing explosions and shots in the early hours of Monday local time. Police chief William Calle stated that an unknown number of prisoners had escaped during the incident but confirmed that 13 have so far been recaptured.
Deadly prison clashes and riots are common in Ecuador, with gangs often targeting members of rival groups. Police attributed Monday's violence to a criminal gang known as Los Lobos Box, which has yet to comment. Initial reports indicate that security personnel rushed to one wing of the prison after receiving an alarm call, only to be taken hostage by the inmates.
The situation escalated as members of Los Lobos Box stormed rival inmates’ quarters. It was reported that some inmates escaped through a hole in the perimeter wall caused by an explosive device they detonated. The means of smuggling these explosives into the prison remains unclear.
Among the injured are two police officers. Authorities regained control of the facility by deploying 200 police and soldiers. Residents of Machala have long called for relocating the prison due to its central location in the city.
Ecuador has been grappling with escalating gang violence, with the country transitioning from one of the safest to one of the deadliest in Latin America. Prison gangs are deeply involved in running organized crime from behind bars, often forming alliances with Mexican drug cartels to manage cocaine trafficking routes through Ecuador. Earlier this month, the U.S. designated two North Ecuadorian gangs as Foreign Terrorist Organizations, citing their violent tactics to dominate drug trafficking routes.
Deadly prison clashes and riots are common in Ecuador, with gangs often targeting members of rival groups. Police attributed Monday's violence to a criminal gang known as Los Lobos Box, which has yet to comment. Initial reports indicate that security personnel rushed to one wing of the prison after receiving an alarm call, only to be taken hostage by the inmates.
The situation escalated as members of Los Lobos Box stormed rival inmates’ quarters. It was reported that some inmates escaped through a hole in the perimeter wall caused by an explosive device they detonated. The means of smuggling these explosives into the prison remains unclear.
Among the injured are two police officers. Authorities regained control of the facility by deploying 200 police and soldiers. Residents of Machala have long called for relocating the prison due to its central location in the city.
Ecuador has been grappling with escalating gang violence, with the country transitioning from one of the safest to one of the deadliest in Latin America. Prison gangs are deeply involved in running organized crime from behind bars, often forming alliances with Mexican drug cartels to manage cocaine trafficking routes through Ecuador. Earlier this month, the U.S. designated two North Ecuadorian gangs as Foreign Terrorist Organizations, citing their violent tactics to dominate drug trafficking routes.
