Thursday, March 25, 2010

Mass Escape

A group of 40 prisoners, most of them federal (which most likely means connected to drug traffickers), have escaped from a municipal jail in Matamoros, Tamaulipas. One thing that you hear complaints about in Mexico from time to time is the fact that not particularly well guarded local jails are overcrowded with organized crime figures, stemming from the lack of federally run prison facilities. This should serve as a wake-up call in that regard.

I also remember reading in a Malcolm Beith piece (I think) many months ago that there were plans to build something like twelve new federal prisons in Mexico. Malcolm, if my memory is correct and you're reading this, have those plans gotten off the ground?

2 comments:

malcolm beith said...

unfortunately, no idea if the new prisons are being built yet. my guess is they're not. there were problems with the bidding for contracts. one of dick cheney's companies reportedly bid for the contracts, then Proceso and a bunch of others lashed out with concerns that the prisons would be like Guantanamo Bay; i heard Cheney and co. then backed out. the target date for the new prisons was 2011 if i recall, so there's still time; but in true gov't tradition, i seriously doubt they'll get them built in time.

pc said...

Right on, thanks for the update.