Eight Inmates Die in Riots at Two Ecuador Prisons

Quito (GNP): Eight inmates have been killed and 10 others injured in riots at two prisons in Ecuador, officials said on Thursday. Authorities link the violence to drug-trafficking gangs operating behind bars.

According to the country’s corrections authorities, four inmates died at the Cotopaxi penitentiary and another four at Pichincha prison. The figures show how quickly the unrest spread across two separate facilities.

The violence began on Thursday afternoon, with reports of gunfire and disturbances inside the prisons. At El Inca prison, forensic personnel reported bodies bearing gunshot and knife wounds, and preliminary information pointed to a dispute between criminal gangs.

Security forces sealed access routes near the Quito facility while operations continued to restore order. Officials have not yet said how the riots were brought under control.

The authorities say those identified as responsible will be moved to El Encuentro. The maximum-security prison was built under President Daniel Noboa’s government to hold the country’s most wanted criminals.

The riots add to a long record of prison violence. More than 500 inmates have been killed in Ecuador’s prisons since 2021, amid persistent fighting between rival criminal groups.

Some facilities are under military control, yet drug-trafficking gangs still challenge the authorities. Officials say these groups order killings and extortion from inside prison walls.

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The latest unrest comes days after the national prisons authority, SNAI, began reassessing the security risk posed by 9,214 inmates in prisons in Cotopaxi, Azuay, Tungurahua and Chimborazo. The measure aims to weaken the criminal groups operating inside prisons.

The deaths now raise concerns about how effective efforts to contain gang rivalries and keep order behind bars have been. Authorities are expected to continue forensic examinations to identify the dead and assess the injuries.

Further security operations, searches and transfers of high-risk inmates may follow. The incident could also bring renewed scrutiny of prison conditions and security procedures.