Deadly Riot at Ecuador’s Infamous Prison Leaves at Least 15 Dead

Updated by Faith Barabara N Ruhinda at 1050 EAT on Tuesday 11 November 2025

At least 15 inmates have been killed and 14 others injured in clashes at one of Ecuador’s largest and most violent prisons, authorities have said.

The fighting broke out early on Tuesday inside a pavilion of the Litoral Penitentiary in the coastal city of Guayaquil, according to the national prison agency, SNAI. Security forces were later deployed to regain control of the facility, which has become a symbol of the country’s deepening security crisis.

By Tuesday afternoon, officials said order had been restored and an investigation launched to determine what triggered the violence. Local media reported that gunfire and explosions were heard coming from inside the prison during the unrest.

The Litoral Penitentiary has been the site of repeated massacres in recent years as rival criminal gangs, many with ties to powerful drug-trafficking networks, battle for control inside Ecuador’s overcrowded and poorly managed prison system.

Hundreds of inmates have been killed in a series of prison riots since 2021, exposing the scale of gang influence behind bars and the inability of authorities to maintain order. Human rights groups have repeatedly condemned the government for failing to address dire conditions within the facilities.

President Daniel Noboa’s administration has promised sweeping reforms to improve security and tackle organised crime, which has increasingly spilled from the prisons onto the streets. Ecuador, once considered one of South America’s more peaceful nations, has seen a dramatic rise in violence in recent years as drug cartels vie for control of trafficking routes along its Pacific coast.

Credit to CNN

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