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Murderous Mexican prison clash

February 20, 2012

Over 40 people have been killed in a violent prison fight in northeastern Mexico, authorities said overnight Sunday. It's been alleged the clash may have been a diversion whilst some inmates escaped.

https://p.dw.com/p/145oA
Relatives of inmates cry as they seek information from the authorities outside Apodaca prison facility
Image: picture alliance / dpa

At least 44 inmates at a Mexico prison died in a fight between rival gangs in a violent outbreak that authorities said could have been used as a diversion whilst other inmates escaped.

Prisoners were found beaten, stabbed and stoned at the prison in Monterrey, about 225 kilometers (140 miles) from the border with Texas.

It was thought that the main protagonists in the prison duel were members of the rival Gulf and Zetas cartels.

"We can't rule out the possibility that some prisoners escaped, which also could be a motive if the fight started as a distraction," said Jorge Domene, security spokesman for the Nuevo Leon state government.        

"When we count the prisoners, and the number of confirmed dead, there are some missing," he said.

Victims' family members congregated outside the prison in angry and emotional scenes following reports of the violent clashes.

It was the second incidence of carnage at a Latin American prison within a week after more than 350 inmates were burned alive in a fire at a run-down detention facility in Honduras.

dfm/slk (Reuters, dpa)