The Sinaloa Secretariat of Public Security (SSP) announced that family members of inmates were granted access to the El Castillo Penitentiary Center in Mazatlán this Saturday, October 10, and that visits would continue on Sunday, October 11, during scheduled hours, following two days of violence that left 12 people dead and 17 injured. This measure was taken while authorities continued inspections inside the prison.
Visits had been suspended since October 8, when a brawl in the prison’s modules four and five resulted in the deaths of nine inmates and a child. The child, who was two years old, had been there for a visit.
A second clash on the morning of October 9 claimed two more lives—victims of stabbing—bringing the total death toll to 12.
A statement released today on the SSP’s social media channels noted that an inter-agency task force is present at the facility providing support—as announced by the federal Security Cabinet—with the aim of ensuring the safety of both visitors and the inmates themselves. The state agency reiterated its “commitment to acting responsibly, keeping the public informed, and collaborating with the relevant authorities to strengthen security within the prison system.”
Nine of the 17 injured individuals discharged
Of the 17 inmates injured in the initial clash, nine were medically discharged following their recovery, while the others remained under hospital care, the SSP reported on the afternoon of October 9. Official data regarding that initial confrontation revealed that security personnel heard gunfire during the first incident and triggered a “red alert,” enabling the intervention of the Inter-agency Group—comprising personnel from the Mexican Army, the National Guard, the Navy, the State Police, and the Municipal Police. This group remained deployed within the facility during the subsequent inspections.
