A wave of extreme violence swept through a prison in southwestern Ecuador on Sunday, leaving at least 31 inmates dead in what authorities described as two distinct episodes of unrest at the Machala facility in El Oro province.
The day’s bloodshed began in the early hours of November 9, around 3:00 a.m. local time, when an armed riot erupted amid gunfire, explosions, and cries for help audible to nearby residents. Ecuador’s National Service for the Comprehensive Care of Persons Deprived of Liberty (SNAI) reported that four inmates were killed during this initial clash, with 33 prisoners and one police officer injured. Elite police units swiftly intervened, regaining control of the prison.
Hours later, in a separate incident, authorities discovered 27 more inmates dead inside the facility. SNAI stated that these prisoners died from asphyxiation and “immediate death by hanging,” phrasing that suggested the victims were killed “among themselves” through suspension – a method often linked to gang executions or forced suicides in Ecuador’s overcrowded prisons. Forensic teams were deployed to confirm details, but the agency emphasized ongoing efforts to fully clarify the events.
The initial riot was reportedly triggered by inmate resistance to a reorganization ahead of transfers to a new maximum-security prison in another province, set to open soon under President Daniel Noboa’s administration. Ecuador’s prisons have long served as battlegrounds for rival drug-trafficking gangs affiliated with international cartels, exacerbating issues of overcrowding, corruption, and smuggled weapons.
This incident marks the latest in a string of deadly prison violence in Ecuador. Just weeks earlier, in late September 2025, a clash at the same Machala prison killed 14 people, including 13 inmates and one guard. Days later, another riot in Esmeraldas claimed 17 lives. Since 2021, over 500 inmates have died in such uprisings nationwide.
Authorities have reinforced security at Machala and other facilities, coordinating with police and armed forces to prevent further reprisals. The government continues to push transfers to the new high-security site as part of broader efforts to curb gang influence behind bars.
