Nearly a dozen inmates killed in prison break in Haiti

Inmates escaped from a prison in the coastal town of Saint-Marc in central Haiti on Friday, police said, as the country continues to struggle with widespread gang violence.

Michel Ange Louis Jeune, spokesman for the Haitian National Police, reported that 11 suspected refugees were killed in shootouts with police and one was arrested. He did not provide further details, including the total number of escaped prisoners.

Haitian newspaper Le Nouvelliste claimed that prison guards had gone on strike to demand better treatment. It quoted government commissioner Vension François as expressing concern about a possible “mutiny” and suggesting possible guard complicity. The report, however, did not provide further details.

No comment was immediately available from local authorities. In a brief statement, the police asked the public for help in identifying the escaped prisoners.

Gunfire was reported near the prison, and videos circulating on social media showed smoke and flames rising from the facility. The exact number of inmates housed at the prison was not immediately clear.

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This incident is the third prison break in Haiti this year. In March, gangs stormed the two largest prisons in the capital, Port-au-Prince, and freed thousands of inmates in coordinated attacks that ultimately led to the resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry.

Similar incidents have occurred in the past in Saint-Marc, in the north of the capital. In December 2014, authorities said, nearly three dozen prisoners escaped after sawing through steel bars. At the time, the prison housed nearly 500 prisoners.

Haiti's prisons are notoriously overcrowded, and pretrial detention often lasts years due to the country's dysfunctional justice system. According to the United Nations, only 1,892 of Haiti's 11,816 prisoners were convicted of a crime last year.

Haiti's prisons also suffer from chronic water and food shortages, leading to dire conditions. Last year, 185 prisoners died, many of them from malnutrition-related illnesses.