Miami-Dade County

Rival gangs brawl inside Miami’s federal prison, sources say. 4 treated for injuries

Two inmates at the Miami Federal Correctional Institution were taken to a hospital after an altercation, fire rescue said.
Two inmates at the Miami Federal Correctional Institution were taken to a hospital after an altercation, fire rescue said. - U.S. Bureau of Prisons

Miami’s federal prison devolved into chaos as two rival gangs participated in a violent, bloody brawl on Saturday afternoon, a law enforcement source told the Miami Herald. Four inmates were rushed to the hospital as a result.

Around 12:20 p.m., two inmates got into an “altercation” at the Miami Federal Correctional Institution which resulted in injuries to both, Miami-Dade Fire Rescue said. They were taken to a hospital as trauma alerts.

FCI Miami did not immediately respond to requests for information on the incident. The federal institution is a low-security prison that holds non-violent offenders.

Courtesy to the Miami Herald

According to a law enforcement source familiar with the incident, two rival gangs started a large brawl in which inmates were stabbed, stomped on and chairs were thrown. The source described the brawl as “a bloodbath.”

Four inmates were treated for injuries, the source said. Two suffered puncture wounds and returned to the prison, while two others who suffered ear bleeding and head trauma were taken to the hospital hours after the fight.

Randilee Giamusso, a spokesperson for the Federal Bureau of Prisons, said six inmates were assessed by doctors and two were hospitalized.

Giamusso said “responding employees isolated and contained the incident and at no time was the public in danger,” adding the FBI has been notified about the melee.

According to Giamusso, the facility “remains on modified operations status” as of Tuesday.

This story was originally published May 25, 2024 at 6:52 PM.

Devoun Cetoute
Miami Herald
Miami Herald Cops and Breaking News Reporter Devoun Cetoute covers a plethora of Florida topics, from breaking news to crime patterns. He was on the breaking news team that won a Pulitzer Prize in 2022. He’s a graduate of the University of Florida, born and raised in Miami-Dade. Theme parks, movies and cars are on his mind in and out of the office.
Jay Weaver
Miami Herald
Jay Weaver writes about federal crime at the crossroads of South Florida and Latin America. Since joining the Miami Herald in 1999, he’s covered the federal courts nonstop, from Elian Gonzalez’s custody battle to Alex Rodriguez’s steroid abuse. He was part of the Herald teams that won the 2001 and 2022 Pulitzer Prizes for breaking news on Elian’s seizure by federal agents and the collapse of a Surfside condo building killing 98 people. He and three Herald colleagues were 2019 Pulitzer Prize finalists for explanatory reporting on gold smuggling between South America and Miami.
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