The fifth round in the Culiacán prison: more illegal scrap metal than in a pirate bazaar
It seems that in the Culiacán penitentiary center they have an accumulation problem. Not useless things you bought online, but contraband items that would make any security guard pale. In the fifth surprise review –yes, the FIFTH, because the previous four were obviously not enough–, the dream team made up of the State Preventive Police and the specialists from the National Guard decided to play hide and seek with the inmates. The result: they found twenty mobile phones (perfect for uploading TikToks from the cell, I guess), fourteen sharp weapons and two precision scales. Because what would prison life be without being able to meticulously measure your… er… culinary ingredients.
But wait, there’s more. This new exhaustive inspection came just 24 hours after the authorities had confiscated an authentic criminal survival kit: narcotic substances, fourteen radio communication equipment, twenty-one mobile devices (do they have a family plan?), an internet modem, a broadband device and the amount not inconsiderable amount of five thousand 200 pesos in cash. Basically, they found everything except the minibar and the movie theater.
When prison routine becomes armed déjà vu
The last surprise search was concentrated only in two housing modules, where according to official reports the inmates received “dignified treatment” while their dangerous toys were confiscated. This whole circus began after the violent episodes last Monday, where the sound of gunshots was reported – because obviously in a Mexican prison paintball Thursdays are serious business –. Since then, they have carried out five search operations in less than seven days. At one of these search festivals they found fifty doses of a white powder with characteristics similar to cocaine (weighing approximately thirty grams) and ten packets of green herb that were definitely not for making chamomile tea.
And in case anyone thought the arsenal was already complete, authorities also came across eight additional firearms, including an AM-15 carbine and a 7.62×39 high caliber rifle – perfect for those special occasions where you need to “make a statement” –, accompanied by eight magazines and several more doses of possible substances controlled, among them that famous green herb with all the characteristics of marijuana. Because in the prison economy, product diversification is key.
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