LatinNews Daily Report - 30 March 2012

Honduras | Another prison disaster. Thirteen inmates died amidst a riot in San Pedro Sula’s main prison yesterday (29 March). One victim was tortured and decapitated and his head thrown off the roof and several died in fire started during a fight between rival prisoners armed with grenades, machetes and knives. The riot was brought under control with the help of the bishop of San Pedro Sula, Romulo Emiliani, who helped mediate. Emiliani warned that these incidents are bound to recur. "Everybody has known for some time that the authorities have no interest in the prisons. They are a time bomb that will continue to explode", he stated.  The prison in San Pedro Sula is designed to house 800 inmates, but currently there are an estimated 2,400 in the facility, according to local reports. In February, 361 people died in a major fire in a similarly overcrowded facility in Comayagua, central Honduras. 

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