Ecuadorian officials stated that at least 68 inmates were killed and 25 others were wounded after an 8-hour shootout and fight broke out between rival gangs at the Litoral Penitentiary in the city of Guayaquil. The fighting started before dawn, and police spokespeople say that it took most of the day for about 900 officers to regain control of the prison, which saw the country's deadliest prison fight just 2 months earlier when 119 inmates were killed.

Pablo Arosemena, the governor of the Guayas province, said that the inmates initially "tried to dynamite a wall to get into Pavilion 2 to carry out a massacre" against rival gang members while police reports indicate that tactical units who entered the prison building to retake control found firearms, ammunition, explosives, and knives. It is believed that the weapons were smuggled to prisoners through supply delivery trucks and drones, though this is still under investigation.

During the incident, many friends and families of inmates gathered outside the prison, asking for the military to step in to stop the fighting. However, although soldiers were assembled outside the penitentiary, the Ecuadorian Constitutional Court's recent refusal for soldiers to enter prisons meant that military intervention did not occur. This latest incident took place about a month after Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso declared a state of emergency that empowers security forces to combat drug trafficking.

As of now, Ecuador has an estimated nearly 40,000 inmates in its penitentiary system, which is above the maximum capacity of roughly 30,000. Of the 40,000 in the system, about 15,000 have not actually been sentenced. The Litoral Penitentiary was designed to hold up to 5,300 inmates, but currently holds 8,500.

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