Thursday, June 4, 2026

The Sun Nigeria

Fighting between inmates at Brazil prison kills 15

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(BBC)Fighting at a prison in northern Brazil has left 15 inmates dead, according to local officials.

The clashes reportedly broke out on Sunday during visiting hours at Anísio Jobim Penitentiary Complex, in Manaus.

Some of the victims were stabbed with sharpened toothbrushes in front of visitors, whilst others were strangled to death.

Officials say the violence has been contained and an investigation has begun into the cause of the struggle.

“It was total chaos,” the mother of an inmate – who did not wish to be named – told the Rio Times.

“Everyone started to run, and everyone was pounding on the cell gates, at the doors, and running down the aisles”.

Overcrowding

It comes only two years after infighting killed 56 at the same jail, one of the deadliest riots ever in a Brazilian prison.

Brazil has the world’s third-largest prison population – 712,305 inmates in April this year, according to official figures.