Dozens escape Mexican jail in brutal attack

• The savage assault in Ciudad Juarez resulted in ten deaths.
• 24 prisoners escaped, according to police.
• One woman reported that the attackers were all in black.

Numerous prisoners have escaped from a prison in northern Mexico after gunmen who are thought to be drug cartel members opened fire on the institution.

Authorities said that just after 07:00 (14:00 GMT), the men came outside the Chihuahua state prison in armoured trucks and started shooting at the guards.

The savage assault in Ciudad Juarez, a border city, resulted in ten deaths and the release of four inmates.

24 prisoners, according to police, escaped.

13 people were hurt in fighting within the prison, where inmates from various gangs and drug cartels are kept in separate cellblocks. In a hospital, four of them are receiving treatment, according to jail officials.

As they waited for news, family members gathered outside, crying and hugging one another.

One woman reported that the attackers were all in black, had more weapons than the cops, and were firing at any passing cars.

The national guard and army have been requested to assist the local government in the aftermath.

Thousands of people have been killed in the city’s years-long deadly confrontations between the rival Sinaloa and Juarez drug gangs in the last ten years.

A disturbance within the prison last August that spilled into the streets and killed 11 people occurred there as well.

Both events highlight the influence that the drug cartels continue to have on the criminal justice system.

An probe into the most recent incident has been promised by prosecutors in the city, which is located over the border from El Paso, Texas.

Before the escape, armed men opened fire on police on a neighbouring street, starting a car chase that resulted in the arrest of four guys.

Two additional drivers lost their lives in another part of the city due to what the authorities labelled armed aggression.

Authorities have not yet indicated whether they believe the incidents are connected.

Also Read

The Mexican mayor murdered in a town hall massacre

At least 17 people, including the mayor of a small town in...