On Saturday night, an episode of great unrest and confusion occurred at the Mammagialla prison , located in Viterbo.
During that night, several dramatic events occurred, including the tragic death of an inmate due to a sudden illness, a suicide attempt by another inmate, and the beginnings of a riot that required the intervention of the prison authorities.
These tense moments occurred just a few days after a protest led by fifty inmates, who occupied an entire section of the prison and refused to return to their cells at night. During a violent brawl , one inmate even bit another inmate's finger.
The escalation of events required the intervention of a support team and placed considerable pressure on the service personnel present, as stated by the regional secretary, Daniele Nicastrini , of the Uspp union.
Around 19:00 p.m., during the closing time of the cells, some inmates took violent actions, threatening the staff and injuring themselves with improvised box cutters. These acts made it necessary to call in additional staff to restore order, as reported by union sources.
The unrest raised concerns among prison authorities, who immediately recalled off-duty prison officers to try to restore calm within the prison. Faced with the escalating situation, the prison director took a drastic step, allowing the use of force to quell the protest , as some inmates had set fire to mattresses in their cells, further aggravating the situation.
During the night, an inmate sadly died from a sudden illness. Previously, the Lazio trade unions had reported to the prison administration the seriousness of the situation in the Viterbo prison, with overcrowding of more than 230 inmates above the regulated capacity and a staff shortage of over 100, making it difficult to ensure safe work organization and compliance with prison regulations.
It should be noted that what happened in Viterbo is not the only episode of violence in a prison in the last few hours, since in Ariano Irpino , in the province of Avellino, a prison police officer was brutally attacked by two Italian inmates, who were subsequently subdued by their colleagues.
