Daniel Noboa began the construction of the maximum security prison for corrupt people and criminals

The president of Ecuador, Daniel Noboa, led this Friday the ceremony to begin construction of the Santa Elena prison, one of the two maximum security prisons that he promised to build for criminal leaders. This model is inspired by the one developed by Nayib Bukele in El Salvador.

“Today we mark one of the most important milestones in our fight against terrorism and the mafias that entrenched themselves with impunity in our country for decades,” declared Noboa during the placement of the first stone of the prison, located in the coastal province of Santa Elena, where the president resides.

He stated that, seven months ago, the prison system was under the control of criminal organizations, which had turned prisons into their centers of operations. And he assured that this scenario changed with the militarization of prisons, ordered at the beginning of the year.

Between 2021 and 2023, more than 500 prisoners were killed in a series of prison massacres, the result of disputes between rival gangs that controlled the prisons.

In response, last January, Daniel Noboa decreed a state of exception that allowed the military to enter prisons to combat organized crime, responsible for the increase in violence in the country.

During his first months in office, the president announced the construction of two maximum security prisons, similar to those implemented in Mexico and El Salvador, although smaller than the Salvadoran Terrorism Confinement Center.

How much will the construction of the prison in Ecuador cost?

The Santa Elena prison will have an investment of $52 million dollars and will be built in a record time of 300 days, reported Luis Zaldumbide, director of the National Service for Comprehensive Attention to Adult Persons Deprived of Liberty and Adolescent Offenders.

The center will extend over 16.2 hectares and will have capacity for 880 inmates.

Zaldumbide highlighted the project’s maximum security pavilions, designed to guarantee strict compliance with judicial measures. In addition, the center will have cutting-edge technology, including video surveillance systems linked to artificial intelligence software, establishing new standards in the categorization of inmates according to their dangerousness.

The SNAI director recalled that, in recent years, the prisons were dominated by organized crime while the previous rulers “looked the other way or made pacts” with them.

Now, he assured that under the government of Daniel Noboa, control of the prisons has been recovered, despite recent complaints of alleged torture and the suspension of visits since January.

The president of Ecuador commented that mafia control had turned prisons into “time bombs” within urban areas, threatening the population and facilitating the commission of crimes. Furthermore, he indicated that there was direct communication with narcopoliticians.

He also announced that the new prison will be called “del Encounter” because the corrupt, murderers, drug traffickers and the most dangerous criminals in the country will be found there. These mafia leaders will be monitored in real time with the support of artificial intelligence.

“We are making history despite all the difficulties that were placed on our path,” said Noboa, who also stated that the new prison will be “a symbol of the beginning of a new era for peace” in the country.

The president concluded: “We are at war against the mafias and this commander in chief is going to fight until the end.”

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