16 Die in Riot at Guatemalan Prison

GUATEMALA CITY – At least 16 inmates died in a riot at the Canada prison farm on Guatemala’s southwestern Pacific coast, authorities said Monday.

Penitentiary system spokesman Rudy Esquivel told reporters that up to now the deaths of 16 prisoners have been confirmed.

Esquivel said that in the early hours, security forces regained control of the prison, located 59 kilometers (37 miles) south of the capital, in Escuintla province.

The rioting broke out Sunday afternoon and the possibility that some of the victims were prison guards has been dismissed.

Security forces did not enter the facility Sunday night because of the danger it represented, not only for them but also for the inmates, Deputy Security Minister Elmer Sosa told reporters outside the prison.

Up to now authorities have taken 12 bodies to the National Institute of Forensic Sciences, or Inacif, in Escuintla, while several police units remain posted outside the prison.

Family members of the inmates have also gathered at the scene and are waiting to hear a report on exactly what is happening.

Guatemala’s penitentiary system has responsibility for operating 22 prisons, in which some 4,000 guards keep watch on more than 19,000 inmates.