Caribbean360: Haiti prison riot trial begins

Haiti prison riot trial begins
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Chris Hoyos on 17/10/2011 11:11:00
 
PORT AU PRINCE, Haiti, October 17, 2011 – Fourteen police officers and
officials of the prison services will go on trial Tuesday for the death of at
least 11 inmates following last year’s devastating earthquake.
They have been charged with murder, attempted murder, arson and aiding and
abetting and could face life in prison if convicted.
The inmates were killed during a prison riot in the southwestern coastal town of
Les Cayes, a week after the earthquake killed an estimated 300,000 people.
The January 19 uprising broke out after some of the more than 400 prisoners
tried to escape.
The Haitian police and UN peacekeepers had surrounded the building to prevent a
mass escape similar to the National Penitentiary in Port-au-Prince on January
12.
The police then stormed the building and opened fire.
The Haitian Government and the peacekeeping mission, Minustah, subsequently
opened a joint investigation into the incident.
The judge overseeing the investigation has suggested that up to 22 people lost
their lives.
Investigators allege the bodies were buried in secret. Click here to receive
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