500 riot police officers entered a prison after a riot broke out at the facility, in the municipality of Cantel. At least seven prisoners were killed in the fight between rival gangs: most of them were beheaded. The prison, 125 miles from the capital, was built to house 500 inmates but has more than 2,000. Police sources told local media one of the inmates had ordered the attack on rival gang members in retaliation for the murder of his wife, who had been shot dead by two men on motorbikes hours earlier. According to the source, this man is serving a sentence for murder. Almost half of the roughly 3,500 violent deaths a year in Guatemala are carried out by gangs.
Guatemala: prison inmates’ gang fight
Written by David Fletcher 20 May 2021Additional Info
- Pray: for authorities to have wise, workable tactics to reduce gang warfare in Latin America. (Matthew 24:6)
- More: www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-57181767
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