LLEIDA, Spain – The Lledoners Penitentiary Centre has once again been the scene of a violent episode against prison staff. According to the SICAP-FEPOL union, three officers were injured on Thursday and had to receive medical attention at the workplace mutual insurance company following an attack by an inmate identified by the initials O. C. G. The events unfolded during an intervention to transfer the prisoner to a mechanical restraint cell on medical instruction. During the transfer, the inmate offered extremely violent resistance, disobeyed orders and, at one point during the transfer, managed to partially free himself from the restraint to deliver a strong kick to the head of the officer directing the operation, causing several officers to fall to the floor.
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Far from calming down, the prisoner continued trying to hit the workers from the floor and uttered serious insults and death threats. According to the union’s complaint, the inmate went as far as to state that he had people outside ready to kill them whenever he gave the order. He also stated that he did not care about being placed under first-degree regime and that the assault had been worth it.
This new incident has provoked a harsh reaction against the political leadership of the Department of Justice and Democratic Quality, headed by Minister Ramon Espadaler. From SICAP-FEPOL they denounce the minister’s silence and the lack of effective measures such as increased staffing, improved protection equipment and immediate legal support for the workforce. The union has also formally demanded the immediate dismissal of the director general of Penitentiary Affairs, Domingo Estepa. The union considers that the recurrence of assaults demonstrates the failure of his management in matters of security. They also recall that Estepa was disciplined for having assaulted an inmate suffering from a terminal illness, a background they describe as incompatible with the responsibility of directing the Catalan penitentiary system.
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Given the seriousness of the events, the union representation has demanded that the administration appear as a prosecutor in the judicial case that derives against the inmate, the immediate communication of what happened to the duty court and the Public Prosecutor’s Office, as well as the adoption of severe disciplinary measures. They also urge the department to urgently review action protocols for prisoners with extremely violent behaviour and to reinforce staffing levels as a priority at Lledoners prison.
Meanwhile, the León penitentiary centre in Mansilla de las Mulas has chained a black weekend after the assault on Saturday of two officers and a new violent episode recorded yesterday morning. The Independent Trade Union and Civil Servants Central described what happened as very worrying and stated that it demonstrates the extreme vulnerability suffered by employees at the Villahierro penitentiary centre, a situation it describes as intolerable. It stressed that these two latest assaults demonstrate that prison professionals risk their lives every shift in the face of the total ineffectiveness of their managers.
