La Joyita Prison is a prison in Pacora,[1] Panama. The facility is overcrowded[2] and has been repeatedly accused of systematic abuses against its population.[3][4]
Problems at the prison have been water being available only for part of the day.[5] In September 2013, the government minister, Jorge Ricardo Fabrega, said 5,500 inmates from La Joya and La Joyita would be transferred, starting in January 2014, to the new La Joya Prison located in Pacora.[6]
On December 17, 2019 a gunfight erupted inside La Joyita. 15 inmates were killed when a split in the street gang Bagdad occurred. Prisoners wielding assault rifles and handguns executed one another in the worst inter-prison violence in the nation's history. The La Joya, La Joyita, Nueva Joya complex continues to degrade into basic concentration camp status. Panama has yet to have implemented any lasting prison reforms. [7]
On February 3, 2020, convicted prisoner Gilberto Ventura Ceballos escaped from La Joyita Prison. The government offered a US $50,000 reward for his recapture. He got recaptured on February 13, 2020.[8]
References
edit- ^ "New Jewel Property Ready for Development". June 10, 2010.
- ^ "Prisoners moved from comfort to overcrowding". Newsroom Panama. 14 September 2010. Archived from the original on 29 January 2013.
- ^ Woods, Sarah (2009-11-24). Panama, 2nd edition. Bradt Travel Guides. p. 65. ISBN 9781841622606. Retrieved 11 December 2012.
- ^ La Joya Prison Riot, 19 Injured - http://www.thepanamadigest.com/2011/09/la-joya-prison-riot-19-injured/
- ^ Bergner, Jeffrey T. (2008-08-01). Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2008: Vols. I and II: Joint Committee Print, U. S. House of Representatives and U. S. Senate. DIANE Publishing. p. 2827. ISBN 9781437905229. Retrieved 11 December 2012.
- ^ 5500 Inmates Will Be Transferred To The New La Joya Prison published on September 02 2013. http://www.panama-guide.com/article.php/20130902230439617
- ^ AP News Report on Panama Prisoner Gun Battlehttps://apnews.com/4e4baa0bcc80e48ef3829ef977679cad
- ^ A $50 mil se incrementa la recompensa por la información sobre Gilberto Ventura Ceballos {in lang|es} La Prensa (Panama), 5 Feb 2020, retrieved 8 Feb 2020