Ecuadorian officials said that at least 67 prisoners were killed Tuesday in riots in 3 prisons in the country.
Officials told local media that riots broke out Tuesday morning in 3 prisons in the cities of Guayaquil (southwest), Cuenca (south) and Latacunga (south), due to leadership disputes between a number of gangs.
Officials indicated that the number of those who died as a result of those events rose to 67.
The Ecuadorian police announced earlier that 62 people were killed during the unrest that took place in the prisons of Guayaquil, Cuenca and Latacunga.
The police did not clarify whether they had been able to restore order in the prisons completely.
In turn, the Ecuadorian President, Lenin Moreno, said in a tweet of "criminal organizations" responsible for the riots, saying that they were involved in "simultaneous violence in several prisons."
He added that "the authorities are working to regain control" of the conditions inside these prisons.
The President of Ecuador sought to control violence in prisons, and declared a state of emergency in it last year due to repeated confrontations between criminal gangs.