Image copyright EPA Image caption The deaths occurred during an operation to quell an uprising in a prison in the eastern state of Veracruz

Seven police officers have been killed in riots at a prison in Mexico, according to Mexican officials.

The deaths occurred during an operation to quell an uprising, they said.

It happened in the La Toma prison in Amatlán de los Reyes in the eastern state of Veracruz between Saturday night and Sunday morning.

The authorities have not yet released any details about any injured prisoners.

Inmates were reported to have broken free from their cells.

Prosecutors say they will be investigating the incident.

In October, 13 people were killed in a riot at a jail in the northern state of Nuevo Leon.</s>COATZACOALCOS, MEXICO (AFP) - Seven people, including at least six police officers, were killed on Sunday (April 1) in a prison riot in eastern Mexico, authorities said, the latest outburst of deadly violence in the country's jails.

Police were trying to transport a group of "highly dangerous" prisoners from the La Toma prison in Veracruz state when inmates attacked the six officers, locked them in an enclosed space and set it on fire, the state government said.

"The inmates started a fire, causing six police officers to die of smoke inhalation," it said in a statement.

A seventh person, who has yet to be identified, was also killed, it said.

Fifteen police officers were hospitalised with injuries. Seven inmates were also wounded in the riot, two of them seriously.

Army troops were sent into the prison to help state police bring the situation under control, the statement said.

Anxious prisoners' relatives gathered outside the prison demanding news of their loved ones, according to an AFP photographer at the scene.

Police in riot gear had set up a tight security cordon around the complex.

The facility is located in the municipality of Amatlan de los Reyes, about 140km south of the Veracruz state capital, Xalapa.

Mexico's prisons are frequently hit by riots, killings and jailbreaks.

Criminal gangs often hold de facto control inside, operating with the complicity of corrupt officials.

The office of Mexico's human rights ombudsman acknowledged the problem in its 2017 report on the country's prisons. It also sounded the alarm over poor conditions, overcrowding and violence.

Deadly prison riots are a major problem across much of Latin America.

Last Wednesday, 68 people died in a fire during a riot in a Venezuelan detention facility. Two of the dead were women visitors.

Veracruz is one of the states hardest hit by a wave of violence that has swept Mexico, driven largely by drug trafficking.

The state is the scene of turf wars between the powerful drug cartels Jalisco New Generation, the Zetas and the Gulf Cartel.</s>MEXICO CITY — Authorities in eastern Mexico say seven police officers have died while trying to quell a prison riot.

The Veracruz state government says the officers entered the La Toma prison in the mountain town of Amatlan de los Reyes to restore order and move some dangerous inmates on Sunday.

It says inmates apparently set fire to some mattresses, and the smoke may have killed the officers. Investigators are trying to confirm the cause of death.

The statement doesn't describe how the riot began.</s>Seven police officers have been killed in riots at a prison in Mexico, according to Mexican officials.

The deaths occurred during an operation to quell an uprising, they said.

It happened in the La Toma prison in Amatlán de los Reyes in the eastern state of Veracruz between Saturday night and Sunday morning.

The authorities have not yet released any details about any injured prisoners.

Inmates were reported to have broken free from their cells.

Prosecutors say they will be investigating the incident.

In October, 13 people were killed in a riot at a jail in the northern state of Nuevo Leon.</s>Seven police were killed Sunday trying to put down a riot at a prison in eastern Mexico, authorities said, the latest outburst of deadly violence in the country's jails.

Another 22 people were injured in the violence, which began late Saturday when inmates at the La Toma prison in the state of Veracruz set fire to mattresses.

 

 The victims died of suffocation, according to initial investigations.

It took 300 police officers to bring the rioting under control early Sunday, the Milenio newspaper reported.

The roughly 1,300 prisoners at the jail had protested against mistreatment and demanded the ouster of the prison director.

The facility is located in the municipality of Amatlan de los Reyes, about 140 kilometers (85 miles) south of the state capital, Xalapa.

Mexico's prisons are frequently hit by riots, killings and jailbreaks.

Criminal gangs often hold de facto control inside, operating with the complicity of corrupt officials.

The office of Mexico's human rights ombudsman acknowledged the problem in its 2017 report on the country's prisons. It also found the country's jails suffer from overcrowding, poor conditions and violence.

Deadly prison riots are a major problem across much of Latin America.

Last Wednesday 68 people died in a fire during a riot in a Venezuelan detention facility. Two of the dead were women visitors.

Veracruz is one of the states hardest hit by a wave of violence that has swept Mexico, driven largely by drug trafficking.

The state is the scene of turf wars between the powerful drug cartels Jalisco New Generation, the Zetas and the Gulf Cartel.</s>Veracruz: Six police officers died on Sunday from smoke inhalation after prisoners started a fire while resisting an effort to transfer dangerous inmates out of a prison in Mexico's Gulf coast state of Veracruz, authorities said.

Veracruz governor Miguel Angel Yunes said a seventh person died but it was unclear if he was an inmate or prison guard.

Yunes said four "highly dangerous" inmates had been helping run criminal networks in the area around the La Toma prison in the town of Amatlan de los Reyes, so officials had decided to transfer them to a maximum-security federal prison.

Yunes did not name the criminal gang involved, but the area was long dominated by Zetas cartel.

When local police, in support of state police, went into the prison to get the four inmates for transfer, they were apparently ambushed by prisoners, who blocked their escape and lit a fire that suffocated six officers, the governor said.

"The six police officers were attacked and were enclosed in an area with no exit. The inmates started a fire, and with the smoke, they caused the asphyxiation and death of the six police officers," Yunes said.

The seventh dead man was not wearing a uniform, and could have been an inmate or guard, Yunes said. His body was being examined.

Seven inmates were injured, two seriously, and 15 police officers were hospitalized, one with serious injuries, authorities said.

Mexico's largely antiquated, over-crowded and poorly guarded prisons have been the scenes of frequent riots and uprisings. In October, 16 inmates died during a prison riot in the northern Mexican border state of Nuevo Leon. In February 2016, at another lockup in Nuevo Leon, 49 prisoners died when two factions of the Zetas cartel clashed.</s>Prison riot in Mexico leaves at least 7 police officers dead

At least seven police officers died as a result of a prison riot in the Mexican state of Veracruz, local media reported on Sunday, Sputnik International reports.

According to the Universal news outlet, security authorities were trying to reinstate order in the La Toma prison after unrest broke out among inmates late on Saturday, with prisoners demanding the resignation of the prison security chief official. The inmates were armed with carpenter tools and set several mattresses on fire.

Police officers possibly died from smoke and an investigation is underway.</s>Veracruz, Mexico, April 2 (IANS) Seven police officers died and at least 10 inmates were injured in a weekend riot at a prison in the eastern Mexican state of Veracruz, local authorities reported on Sunday.

The riot broke out about 10 pm on Saturday in the La Toma state prison, located in the mountain city of Amatlan de Los Reyes, where 1,300 prisoners demanded that the warden and the police chief at the facility be fired, Xinhua reported.

Officers with the anti-riot force under the authority of Veracruz’s Public Safety Secretariat entered the prison to try and bring the rioting inmates under control.

The state government in a press release announced that upon entering the facility, the police were repelled by the inmates who had gained access to certain carpentry tools and had set fire to mattresses.

Seven police officers died during the operation, which concluded about 6 am on Sunday, when security forces were finally able to retake full control of the prison.

The burning of the mattresses, the bulletin said, “could have caused the asphyxiation of the police,” but experts with the State Attorney General’s Office are investigating the cause of death of the officers.

At least 10 prisoners were injured during the operation. Outside the prison, Federal Police, Mexican marines, the state police and the Military Police were on guard to prevent inmates’ relatives from gaining entry to the facility.

Prisoners’ relatives confronted the officers and demanded that Gov. Miguel Angel Yunes come to the site to report to them on the situation.

The state of Veracruz has been beset by a rising spiral of violence over the past decade due to the presence of drug trafficking gangs and cartels.</s>Seven police were killed Sunday trying to put down a riot at a prison in eastern Mexico, authorities said, the latest outburst of deadly violence in the country's jails.

Police were trying to restore order at the La Toma prison in Veracruz state, but "were driven back by inmates who had seized tools from the carpentry workshop" and were using them as weapons, the state government said.

It described some of the prisoners as highly dangerous.

The government did not say whether any inmates were hurt or escaped, or what the current situation was at the prison.

The facility is located in the municipality of Amatlan de los Reyes, about 140 kilometers (85 miles) south of the state capital, Xalapa.

Mexico's prisons are frequently hit by riots, killings and jailbreaks.

Criminal gangs often hold de facto control inside, operating with the complicity of corrupt officials.

The office of Mexico's human rights ombudsman acknowledged the problem in its 2017 report on the country's prisons. It also found the country's jails suffer from overcrowding, poor conditions and violence.

Deadly prison riots are a major problem across much of Latin America.

Last Wednesday 68 people died in a fire during a riot in a Venezuelan detention facility. Two of the dead were women visitors.

Veracruz is one of the states hardest hit by a wave of violence that has swept Mexico, driven largely by drug trafficking.

The state is the scene of turf wars between the powerful drug cartels Jalisco New Generation, the Zetas and the Gulf Cartel.</s>Seven police officers died and at least 10 inmates were injured in a weekend riot at a prison in the eastern Mexican state of Veracruz, local authorities reported Sunday.

The riot broke out about 10 pm on Saturday in the La Toma state prison, located in the mountain city of Amatlan de Los Reyes, where 1,300 prisoners demanded that the warden and the police chief at the facility be fired.
An overnight prison riot kills seven police officers in Amatlán de los Reyes, Veracruz, Mexico.