16 inmates killed, 5 wounded in bloody Mexican prison riot

Sixteen inmates were killed and five wounded in a prison riot inside a Mexican prison Tuesday, one of the worst outbreaks of violence in the country’s troubled penal system, according to news reports.

The brawl broke out at about 2:30 p.m. during visiting hours at the Regional Center for Social Reintegration, a men’s prison in Ciengeguillas in the state of Zacatecas, authorities said in a statement.

Police restored order by 5 p.m. and found a cache of weapons in the prison, including four guns, ammunition, and more than two dozen blades and knives. Authorities also confiscated drugs, including 77 “doses” of marijuana, Mexico’s El Universal newspaper reported.

Police believe visitors snuck many of the weapons into the prison during visiting hours.

Authorities have not disclosed the cause of the riot, but the Mexican news agency Proceso reported that it was believed to have been sparked by a dispute over a soccer game between two groups of inmates.

Several other news outlets said the fight was between rival cartel members.

The riot is the latest stain on the Mexican government’s troubled prison system and the worst jailhouse violence since 28 inmates were killed in an Acapulco prison in 2017.

With Post wires

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