The National Penitentiary Institute (INP) transferred 106 inmates considered highly dangerous to the National Penitentiary of Támara, in Francisco Morazán, as part of a strategy to weaken the leadership of Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) and the 18th Street Gang within the Honduran prison system.
The director of the INP, General Walter Amador Lacayo, reported this Thursday that the operation involved the movement of 54 inmates from the Ilama penitentiary in Santa Bárbara, known as El Pozo, and another 52 from La Tolva, located in Morocelí, El Paraíso.
"We are carrying out a transfer from Ilama, in Santa Bárbara, El Pozo, to Támara, and also from La Tolva in Morocelí to Támara. We are transferring 54 highly dangerous inmates from Ilama and 52 from La Tolva, a total of 106 highly dangerous inmates," the official explained.
Lacayo noted that the selected inmates hold levels of leadership and influence within the criminal structures, which is why the authorities consider it necessary to separate them from other members of their organizations and concentrate them in facilities that allow for stricter surveillance.
The transfers were carried out based on intelligence analysis of the inmates' profiles and seek to reduce the capacity for influence of the main criminal bosses in the penitentiaries of Ilama and Morocelí.
The strategy also...
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Another 52 inmates linked to the Mara Salvatrucha were transferred from La Tolva, in Morocelí, El Paraíso. (Photo: National Penitentiary Institute) The National Penitentiary Institute (INP) transferred 106 inmates considered high risk to the National Penitentiary of Támara, in Francisco Morazán, as part of a strategy to weaken the leadership of the Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) and Pandilla 18 within the Honduran prison system. The INP director, General Walter Amador Lacayo, reported this Thursday that the operation involved moving 54 inmates from the Ilama penitentiary, in Santa Bárbara, known as El Pozo, and another 52 from La Tolva, located in Morocelí, El Paraíso. "We are making a transfer from Ilama, in Santa Bárbara, El Pozo, to Támara, and also from La Tolva in Morocelí to Támara. We are transferring 54 high-risk inmates from Ilama and 52 from La Tolva, a total of 106 high-risk inmates," explained the official. Lacayo noted that the selected inmates have levels of leadership and influence within criminal structures, so the authorities consider it necessary to separate them from other members of their organizations and concentrate them in facilities that allow for stricter surveillance. A total of 54 inmates linked to Pandilla 18 were mobilized from the Ilama penitentiary, Santa Bárbara. (Photo: National Penitentiary Institute)
The movements were carried out based on intelligence analysis of the inmates' profiles and aim to reduce the capacity of the main criminal leaders to exert influence in the Ilama and Morocelí penitentiaries. The strategy also intends to prevent the bosses from maintaining power structures within the prisons, from where they could maintain communication and influence over other members of the criminal organizations. Separating MS-13 and Pandilla 18 members
Of the mobilized inmates, 54 were incarcerated in Ilama and are linked to Pandilla 18, while the other 52 came from La Tolva and belong to the Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13). The distribution responds to strategic movements that the penitentiary authorities keep confidential to prevent criminal organizations from anticipating the transfer procedures and security decisions. With these relocations, the INP seeks to modify the conditions of internal control in both penitentiaries, especially by separating individuals identified as leaders or bosses with the capacity to exert pressure on other inmates. The penitentiary authorities identified the transferred individuals as people with levels of leadership and influence within criminal organizations. (Photo: National Penitentiary Institute)
Regarding the prison population, Lacayo indicated that La Tolva will have approximately 1,200 inmates after the movements, while Ilama will reduce its population from 2,098 to about 2,000 inmates. The concentration of inmates considered the most dangerous in Támara is part of a reorganization of the penitentiary system, aimed at maintaining greater control over those who allegedly lead or exert influence within criminal structures. One of the main destinations for the transferred inmates is the maximum security module known internally as the Támara school module, which has a capacity of 212 inmates. The INP director explained that this space currently houses 134 inmates and that, with the new movements, the occupancy will increase to approach its maximum capacity. "In Támara, in the school module, which we call it, of maximum security, it has a capacity of 212 inmates, and currently we have a total of 134, plus these we are adding. That is, in that maximum Támara module, the school module we call it, we are already filling the quota of 212," stated the INP director. Walter Amador Lacayo, the INP director, explained that the movements seek to weaken the leadership of criminal structures within the prisons. (Photo: National Penitentiary Institute)
The infrastructure is designed to maintain stricter surveillance and control conditions over inmates classified as high risk, especially those identified by the authorities as members of terrorist structures. The official also noted that the penitentiary has other spaces enabled to receive more inmates. Lacayo explained that Támara has new modules inaugurated in May, as part of the expansion of the penitentiary infrastructure. One building has a capacity of 720 spaces, while the authorities are working on clearing and conditioning another module with the same number of spaces. According to the INP director, there are currently around 1,300 available spaces for inmates designated as terrorists, which would allow for the continuation of the movements and the reorganization of the prison population.