Page 11 - ATD13Febr2016

WORLD NEWS A11
Saturday 13 February 2016

Hammers and shivs used in Mexico prison riot that killed 49

Relatives of inmates stand outside the Topo Chico prison in he just went like this,” she guns, many say the Zetas place on the eve of Pope
Monterrey, Mexico. Mexico’s deadliest prison brawl in many added, moving her head and Gulf cartels run the Francis’ arrival in Mexico,
years was a bloodbath in which inmates attacked each other from side to side. The harsh prison. “They charge taxes, a visit that is scheduled to
with hammers, cudgels and makeshift blades, authorities said conditions inside the lock- and if the relatives don’t include a trip next week to
Friday. up were a familiar story bring a certain amount ... another prison in the bor-
for Victoria Casas Gutier- they beat them,” Casas der city of Ciudad Juarez.
(AP Photo/Emilio Vazquez) rez, a cleaning lady who Gutierrez said, adding that The fighting began around
waited for hours for news the payments can run into midnight with prisoners set-
of her 21-year-old son, San- the thousands of pesos. ting fire to a storage area,
tiago Garza Casas, who “Sometimes we have to sell sending flames and smoke
was facing trial for alleg- our homes.” “There is vice billowing into the sky.
edly acting as a lookout inside and everything that The clash was initially said
for a criminal gang. Garza is in there is their fault, the to be between two gangs
was sent to Topo Chico in authorities,” she said. led by a member of the in-
September for missing a Casas Gutierrez’s son was famous Zetas drug cartel,
parole appointment and not on the list of the dead, Juan Pedro Zaldivar Far-
immediately thrown in with but some bodies were so ias, also known as “Z-27,”
a prison population that badly burned it may take and Jorge Ivan Hernandez
included convicted mur- days to identify them. Cantu, who has been iden-
derers. With their gang ties No escapes were reported tified by Mexican media as
and access to drugs and in the clash, which took a Gulf cartel figure.q

PORFIRIO IBARRA a reality in the entire peni-
Associated Press tentiary system is that there
MONTERREY, Mexico (AP) is self-rule” by the inmates,
— Mexico’s deadliest pris- Rodriguez said. “All this cor-
on brawl in many years was ruption inside the prison
a bloodbath in which in- creates the conditions we
mates attacked each oth- have today.” He acknowl-
er with hammers, cudgels edged that prisoners effec-
and makeshift blades, au- tively lord over the facility
thorities said Friday, under- and that there were not
lining yet again the power enough guards watching
that drug cartels wield in- them: “Nobody wants to
side many of the country’s be a guard,” he said, be-
lockups. Jaime Rodriguez, cause of the meager pay.
governor of the northern About half the inmates at
state of Nuevo Leon, said Topo Chico have been
60 hammers, 86 knives and sentenced for minor of-
120 shivs were used in the fenses or are suspects still
previous day’s fighting at awaiting trial. Neverthe-
the Topo Chico prison in less they are housed in
Monterrey, where 49 in- the prison’s overcrowded
mates were hacked, beat- general population along-
en or burned to death, and side many of the country’s
a dozen more injured. most hardened killers. One
At least 40 of the victims of them was Raymundo
“died from wounds from Gonzalez Hernandez, a
stabbing and cutting 23-year-old who is ac-
weapons, blows from ham- cused of kidnapping but
mers and clubs,” Rodriguez whose trial is still pending.
said at a news conference. He was not among those
Authorities also seized vari- listed as wounded during
ous kinds of contraband the riot, but his cousin said
items from marijuana and he was covered by bruises
cocaine to televisions and and welts when she was al-
USB memory sticks. lowed inside to see him.
A dispute between rival “Both his eyes were practi-
factions of the Zetas cartel cally closed from all the hits
was believed to be behind they gave him,” Cynthia
the violence. Hernandez said.
“What we have to see as “He couldn’t even speak,