13 Wounded in Prison Fight in Mexico

CANCUN, Mexico – Thirteen inmates were wounded in disturbances at the jail in the Mexican Caribbean resort city of Cancun over the weekend, officials said.

Two of the inmates were seriously wounded in the brawl on Sunday, Quintana Roo state Public Safety Secretary Juan Pedro Mercader Rodriguez said.

An attack on the leader of a prison gang led to a second fight as the man was being transported to Cancun General Hospital for treatment, Mercader said.

Security will be tightened on family visiting days, the public safety secretary said.

“The inmates violated the agreement we had with them to avoid any types of disturbances during family visits,” Mercader said.

“What’s going to happen now is that the number of visits and times are going to be restricted. This is the second time this happens. We had a problem before during a soccer game and there were 40 hurt, 30 of whom were hospitalized,” Mercader said.

An investigation has been opened into the incident at the jail, the Quintana Roo Attorney General’s Office said.