138 Mexican Altiplano Inmates Including Drug Lords Filed Complaint For Bad Prison Conditions

Spoiled food, smelly mattresses, lack of exercise, unhealthy holding cells, limited access to phone calls and gross inappropriate search procedures done to visitors are a few of the alleged human rights violation complaint filed by 138 Altiplano prison inmates including Joaquín Guzmán Loera, aka, "El Chapo" and other drug lords held at the maximum security prison.

By H. Nelson Goodson

Hispanic News Network U.S.A.

February 27, 2015

Mexico, D.F. - On Wednesday, 138 Altiplano maximum security prison inmates including Joaquín Guzmán Loera, aka, "El Chapo" of the Sinaloa Cartel filed a human rights violation complaint registered number 19066 with the Mexican National Human Rights Commission (MNHRC) alleging the prison warden and staff of corruption and committing human rights violations. The 11-page hand written complaint to the MNHRC claims that the inmates including multiple drug lords, kidnappers and murders held at the prison, including Edgar Valdez Villareal, aka, "La Barbie," Héctor Beltran Leyva, aka, "El H," Abel Valadez Uribe from La Familia Michoacana, Ramiro Rangel Soto from the Gulf Cartel and Miguel Ángel Félix Gallardo of the Guadalajara Cartel claim that they are given spoiled food (beans with stones, chicken with worms), sleep in dirty and smelly mattresses, lack of exercise, kept in unhealthy holding cells, have controlled and limited access to phone calls, only allowed one hour of solar powered light and gross inappropriate search procedures done to visitors are just a few of the alleged human rights violations conducted by prison staff and guards. In addition, they claim that they only get one hour limit at the outdoor prison yard, they get inadequate medical care, have no social or exercising activities and the prison store is not operated efficiently.

A medical prison staff member, "Areli" treats them like animals and is the prison technical director, Librado Carmona García's girlfriend. García is accused of charging inmates money for favors and shares the bribes with other directors of the prison system. 

Inmates are allowed to spend $664 pesos ($51 U.S.) per month and they say, that the amount is not enough to buy hygiene products and powder soap to wash and etc. The prison store needs to have a larger variety of products for the inmates need for healthy hygiene, according to the human rights violation complaint.

That the prison conjugal visiting rooms or sections for private visits have no running cold and hot water, bathrooms and sinks are broken and not working, water pipes leak, beds not suitable for inmates and partners to have intimate visits, the inmates filed complaint alleged.

The inmates believe that once their human rights violation complaint is made public, they expect for the prison warden and staff to take reprisals against all of the inmates at Altiplano prison.

Seven months ago, the inmates and drug lords had a hunger strike to bring attention to their mistreatment, bad food and unhealthy conditions at the prison.

A copy of the 11-page inmate complaint was received by the Nayarit online dot MX and it published the inmates allegations on Thursday.