Venezuela: 68 killed in fire inside a prison at state police headquarters
A senior government official said four prosecutors have been appointed to investigate the incident.
Sixty-eight people died in a fire inside a jail cell area at a police station in Venezuela’s Carabobo state on Tuesday. Of the dead, 66 people were prisoners, and two women were staying overnight, Chief Prosecutor Tarek Williams Saab said on Twitter.
3) En las indagaciones preliminares, los resultados arrojan el fallecimiento d 66 hombres y dos mujeres q se encontraban en calidad de visitantes (pernocta) A los mismos se les realizaron los respectivos protocolos d autopsia y entrega respectiva de los cuerpos a sus familiares
— Tarek William Saab (@TarekWiliamSaab) March 29, 2018
Saab said four prosecutors had been appointed to determine what happened at the state police headquarters in Valencia.
Jesus Santander, the secretary general to Carabobo Governor Rafael Lacava, confirmed a report that a detainee shot a police officer in the leg, after which mattresses were set on fire inside the prison, BBC reported. While some of the prisoners burned to death, others died of suffocation.
Santander said the situation had now been brought under control.
Angry relatives of the detainees clashed with police officers outside the prison and demanded to know if their kin had survived, AP reported. The police used tear gas to disperse the protesters.
