A confrontation between the rival Mara Salvatrucha [2] and La 18 gangs at Guatemala's central prison, on the outskirts of the capital, ended in seven deaths Nov. 22—with five of the dead beheaded and burned. When authorities retook the prison five hours after the riots began, one of the heads was displayed on a stick and hung in the bars of their cells. The revolt was started in reaction to the arrival of prisoners from another prison in the south, El Boqueron, which had also seen disturbances. (El Revolucionario [3], Nov. 23; AP [4], Nov. 22)
In September 2007, four were killed with improvised weapons in gang violence at El Boquerón, located in Cuilapa, Santa Rosa department. (Prensa Libre [5], Sept. 30, 2007)
See our last posts on Guatemala [6] and Central America [7].
