Ecuadorian police carry out large-scale dragnet at prison after riot

The Ecuadorian police on Thursday carried out a large-scale dragnet inside a prison where over 110 inmates were killed and around 80 others injured in a riot on Tuesday, reported Xinhua.

The police operation took place in Litoral Penitentiary, a prison located in the coastal city of Guayaquil, following the deadliest prison riot in the history of the South American country.

The operation involved officers from four special-forces units, as well as forensics experts and police officers from preventive, investigative and intelligence units, police said via Twitter.

Under a 60-day state of emergency that the government decreed on Wednesday throughout the prison system, the National Police and the Armed Forces were deployed to all prisons to reinforce and reestablish order and internal control, as well as secure the periphery of prisons.

The Litoral Penitentiary riot included gunfire and explosions, according to the police report, which attributed the incident to disputes between rival criminal gangs vying for control of the prison.

The Ecuadorian Prosecutor's Office and the police continue to investigate the incident.

Ecuador is facing a prison crisis aggravated by overcrowded facilities and a lack of guards, according to authorities.