The death toll in the prison riot of Ecuador rose to 116 on Wednesday after the clashes that took place on Tuesday night, at Penitenciaria del Litoral in Guayas province. The area has been the site for recurring fights between gangs for dominance over the prison, in recent months.
In Tuesday night’s blood-soaked fights, another 80 inmates were injured. President Guillermo Lasso, said on Wednesday that he would send additional security to the region to prevent such terrible incidents from happening again. He added that it was unfortunate that criminal groups were trying to convert the prison facility into war grounds.
Similar clashes had occurred in several other prisons through out Ecuador in February and July this year. In the violence in February, 79 people were killed by the prison inmates. Another 22 people died in the fights that took place in July.
The deadliest act of violence of all the clashes was the one that took place on Tuesday night. The prosecutor’s office of the country said earlier on Wednesday that six of the dead prisoners’ heads were cut off from the body.
A lot of people gathered around the prison facility to inquire about their relatives. They demanded accountability from the jail authorities regarding the safety of the prison inmates. The government deployed military troops outside the prison. Lasso announced that the families of the dead and injured prisoners would be assisted by the state.
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