Altamira prison brawl

For the riot in Brazil, see 2019 Altamira prison riot.

Altamira prison brawl
Part of Mexican Drug War
Coordinates22°20′N 97°52′W / 22.333°N 97.867°W / 22.333; -97.867
Date4 January 2012 (2012-01-04)
TargetGulf Cartel
Attack type
Mass murder
Deaths31
Injured13
MotiveGang rivalry

The Altamira prison brawl was a deadly fight that occurred on 4 January 2012 in Altamira, Tamaulipas, Mexico.[1] Officials from the state of Tamaulipas confirmed that 31 people were killed, with another thirteen injured.[2] The fight started after a drug gang burst into a section of the prison where they were banned from, attacking their rival gang housed there, triggering the fight.[3] During the altercation, the inmates used several kinds of cold weapons (non-firearms) to kill their opponents.[4] The prisoners also used sticks and knives to massacre the members of the rival gang.[5]

Alejandro Poiré Romero, Mexico's Secretary of the Interior, pledged to work with the state of Tamaulipas.[6] In addition, the United Nations condemned the massacre and asked for the National Human Rights Commission to "monitor conditions of detention throughout Mexico."[7]

  1. ^ Klerigan, Efrain (4 January 2012). "Mexico Prison Fight: 31 Killed in Altamira". HuffPost. Archived from the original on 16 January 2012. Retrieved 20 February 2012.
  2. ^ (in Spanish) "Pelea entre presos deja 31 muertos en México". BBC News. 5 January 2012. Retrieved 20 February 2012.
  3. ^ "31 killed in Mexican prison fight between rival drug gangs". The Global Post. 5 January 2012. Archived from the original on 19 February 2012. Retrieved 20 February 2012.
  4. ^ (in Spanish) "Riña en penal de Altamira, Tamaulipas, deja 31 muertos". Televisa. 4 January 2012. Retrieved 20 February 2012.
  5. ^ (in Spanish) "Confirman 31 internos muertos en penal de Altamira". Terra Networks. 4 January 2012. Retrieved 20 February 2012.
  6. ^ (in Spanish) "Batalla en penal de Altamira deja 31 muertos y 13 heridos". Milenio. 5 January 2012. Archived from the original on 7 September 2012. Retrieved 20 February 2012.
  7. ^ (in Spanish and English) "Palabras de la Portavoz de la Sra. Navi Pillay, Alta Comisionada de la ONU-DH sobre los hechos del pasado domingo en el reclusorio de Apodaca Nuevo León" (PDF). El Universal. 21 February 2012. Retrieved 22 February 2012.