| Author |
Comment
|
tio_foncho
Sep 14, 08 - 8:45 PM |
Inmates take over La Mesa prison in Tijuana
The inmates at the La Mesa prison in Tijuana took over the prison this afternoon. Latest word is that there are four dead. The authorities are mounting an attack to take back control.
|
SUNDOG
Sep 15th, 2008 - 8:18 AM |
Re: Inmates take over La Mesa prison in Tijuana
At least 6 reportedly die in riot at prison
Inmates' deaths spark uprising
By Luis Perez
UNION-TRIBUNE ASSOCIATED PRESS
September 15, 2008
Associated Press
An injured prisoner waits for an ambulance after an inmates riot at La Mesa State Prison in Tijuana, Mexico, Monday, Sept. 15, 2008. Prisoners were angered by the alleged deaths of inmates at the hands of guards, and at least four prisoners were injured.
As many as six inmates may have been killed yesterday at the La Mesa State Penitentiary in Tijuana in a riot caused by prisoners angered by the alleged deaths of inmates at the hands of guards.
Authorities issued no official statement about the uprising, which led to conflicting reports about the number of injured and possibly killed. Messages from inmates and eyewitnesses speaking outside the prison said that at least six people had died and that dozens were injured.
The Associated Press had confirmed no deaths as of 6:30 p.m., quoting a Red Cross official who said that four prisoners had been shot and were evacuated for treatment. It was unclear who shot them.
Prison authorities have refused to give any information, and it was unclear how much of the compound was under the prisoners' control.
The riot began about 2 p.m. and quickly escalated. Inmates hung a sign from a wall of the prison and threw scribbled notes to the sidewalk below saying that they were protesting their poor treatment.
Some threw chunks of concrete, pieces of wood and other items toward officers. Military forces also were called in to quell the violence.
Several messages claimed that prison guards had killed at least two prisoners, beating one man to death Saturday and killing the other last week.
“No more dead,” one banner read. “The guards are assassins.”
The rioting prisoners also said they want longer visiting hours and the ability to see people who aren't direct family.
Soldiers and police surrounded the building, and a helicopter clattered overhead. Family members trying to find out information on those inside gathered at police cordons and clashed at least twice with security officials.
The riot began during what are normally visiting hours, but it was unclear if any visitors were trapped inside.
As evening fell, a fire raged on the prison's patio. A helicopter flew over the prison about 8 p.m. and fired several shots at inmates standing atop one of the prison buildings, witnesses said.
La Mesa prison, or “la peni,” as it is known to residents and inmates, has had riots, deadly clashes among inmates, and assassinations of prison wardens since 1978, nearly all involving prisoners with firearms.
For many years, it was the only state penitentiary in Baja California. State officials repeatedly complained about the presence of dangerous federal prisoners – most arrested on drug or weapons charges – leading to serious overcrowding.
In April 2004, five men escaped from the prison in a shootout that seriously wounded a guard. Two of the escapees had ties with the region's drug traffickers.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Staff writer Anne Krueger and freelance writer Omar Millán González contributed to this report.
|
tio_foncho
Sep 18th, 2008 - 11:04 AM |
Re: Inmates take over La Mesa prison in Tijuana
It's gone from bad to worse. The government took back control on Monday. Yesterday another riot broke and all the Mexican papers are reporting another 19 dead in the ensuing battle to take back control.
The three chief wardens of the prison are under arrest by the state authorities.
|
BAJA NEWS
Sep 18th, 2008 - 11:52 AM |
19 killed in second Tijuana prison riot in days
19 killed in second Tijuana prison riot in days Message List
19 killed in second Tijuana prison riot in days
By LUIS PEREZ
TIJUANA, Mexico (AP) -- Soldiers and federal police have regained
control of Tijuana's infamous La Mesa State Penitentiary after a
second riot in three days left 19 people dead and 12 injured,
officials said Thursday.
Relatives of the inmates say they rioted because they were not given
food or water since the previous riot on Sunday, which led to the
deaths of three inmates. Authorities blamed warring gangs, but said
prison officials also are suspected of being involved in the second
melee, and three top officials were suspended by the governor pending
an investigation.
"We are investigating all of the officials at La Mesa penitentiary
who could have been responsible or have been in cohorts with some of
the inmates," said Daniel de la Rosa, Baja California's Public Safety
Secretary.
De la Rosa told Mexico's Televisa network that 200 inmates would be
transferred to other state prisons to avoid more violence between
prison gangs.
It was not immediately known whether prison guards or police were
among the dead, and De la Rosa did not say how prison officials were
allegedly involved in the second melee.
Baja California Gov. Jose Guadalupe Osuna said he has suspended La
Mesa's warden, Carlos Arturo Gonzales; the director overseeing state
prisons, Miguel Angel Canett; and the deputy secretary of the state's
penitentiary system, Simona Camino.
All three are being investigated for any wrongdoing, he told Televisa.
Just across the U.S. border from San Diego, California, the prison
has long been held up as the quintessential example of what's wrong
with Mexico's corrupt and overcrowded prison system.
La Mesa prisoners gained worldwide notoriety after they built and ran
their own city inside the penitentiary's sprawling courtyard. Inmates
bought and sold townhomes, ran shops, hired prostitutes and drug
gangs ruled the village before federal police bulldozed it in 2002
under former President Vicente Fox.
Fox touted the destruction of the prisoners' city as proof his
government was serious about combatting corruption. But the
overcrowded prison has held onto its reputation for violence and
ungovernability.
|
BAJA NEWS
Sep 23rd, 2008 - 8:07 AM |
Organized crime linked to violence
Organized crime linked to violence
By Sandra Dibble
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
September 23, 2008
TIJUANA – Investigators are following numerous leads as they try to
piece together the events at the La Mesa state penitentiary that
ignited two days of rioting last week and left at least 23 dead.
We have facts that we cannot reveal at the moment, but I can assure
you it has a lot to do organized crime," Rommel Moreno Manjarrez Baja
California's attorney general, said yesterday.
The largest criminal group has been identified as Los Sureños; the
Tijuana weekly Zeta has reported that the group consists of members
of the California prison gang Mexican Mafia, who operate in San
Diego's Barrio Logan and have links to the Arellano Félix cartel.
Moreno said the group's leader inside the prison, identified as
Victor Eduardo Aguilar Sánchez, is serving a sentence for kidnapping
and homicide. He is one of six prisoners accused of instigating the
first riot. He was transferred to Mexico's maximum security Almoloya
penitentiary outside Mexico City.
Screwdrivers, scissors and other sharp metal objects were among 371
improvised weapons seized from inmates, officials said.
Moreno said it's possible there could be more than 23 killed.
Investigators are testing bones and ash found at the prison that they
believe could belong to one or more victims. Though most of the dead
appear to be inmates, Moreno would not rule out that guards could be
among the fatalities.
Law enforcement officials acknowledge that the initial outbreak of
violence Sept. 14 followed the death of a 19-year-old inmate at the
hands of guards. The violence flared further Sept. 17 as members of
criminal groups began fighting each other and police, officials say.
Baja California's human rights ombudsman has said the inhumane
treatment of inmates primarily caused the unrest.
Family visits have been suspended, but since Sunday, inmates have
begun communicating with their relatives through telephones and video
screens set up inside and outside the prison.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
----------
Sandra Dibble: (619) 293-1716; sandra.dibble@uniontrib.com
|
First
Prev
Reply
Home
bravenet.com