Prison wars in Brazil escalate with killings

• Thirtythree inmates were slain Friday in northern Brazil, some with their hearts and intestines ripped out, during a prison killing spree led by the country’s largest gang, authorities said.

The bloodshed comes just days after 60 inmates were killed during rioting at two prisons in a neighbouring state and it increases fears that violence could spread, including to the streets of major cities, as gangs vie for influence and territory both inside prisons and in slums where trafficking operations are often based.

It’s also becoming a flashpoint for the government of President Michel Temer, whose administration is already struggling with an economic crisis and mounting corruption allegations. Authorities of the state of Roraima, on t he border with Venezuela, said they requested help from Brazil’s federal government more than once, but no support was sent.

“This is a national crisis,” said Uziel Castro, security secretary of the state where the latest massacre happened.

Castro said the slaying spree began around 2:30 a.m. Friday at the Agricultural Penitentiary of Monte Cristo in the town of Boa Vista. He said it was led by members of Sao Paulo- based First Command, Brazil’s biggest criminal organization. He said First Command members did not attack a rival gang, but rather other prisoners, for unclear motives.

“There was no confrontation, this was a killing spree,” said Castro. “It was barbaric.”

Castro said firearms were not involved, and none of the 1,500 inmates in the prison built for about 700 had escaped.

The rioting Sunday and Monday in Amazonas included the country’s worst prison massacre since 1992.