57 killed as rival gangs fight in Brazilian prison

PARA, Brazil – Not less than 57 people have been confirmed killed as rival gangs engage each other in a free for all fight at the Altamira Prison in Para State, Brazil.

It was a long drawn battle which lasted for hours as prison officials battle to end what has become a regular occurrence in Brazilian prison owing to overcrowding and state of poor facilities

The Altamira Prison in Para State has capacity of for 200 inmates, but reports say 309 prisoners are currently in the facility.

But more traumatic in the fight was the discovery by prison officials that 16 of those dead were beheaded and dozens of others suffocated when the prison facility went up in flames.

Addressing a press conference, prison officials told journalists that the violence began at about 07:00 local time (10:00 GMT) on Monday, and ended at around noon, officials said.

According to officials, members of the Comando Classe A (CCA) gang set fire to a cell where rival gang members from Comando Vermelho (Red Command) were kept, the Pará state government said in a statement.

The inferno spread rapidly resulting in the sufforcation of may dozens of inmates. Officials said the prison was never the target of the attack but one of the gangs.

Officials of the Ministry of Justice said that ringleaders of the violence will be transferred to more secure units in federal jail.