Ecuador arrests nine prison staff after search finds drugs, weapons in offices

Ecuador's security forces stand guard next to relatives of inmates while they wait for news about their loved ones outside the prison in Guayaquil, after Ecuador's government on Tuesday declared a 60-day state of emergency throughout the country's prisons and authorized armed forces to retake control of jails, following a wave of violence that left 18 dead over the weekend, in Guayaquil, Ecuador July 25, 2023. REUTERS/Vicente Gaibor del Pino/File Photo

QUITO (Reuters) - Banned drugs and weapons were found in offices at Ecuadorean prisons on Friday, prompting the arrests of two wardens and seven other staff members, the country's prosecutor said.

A wave of violence swept prisons in late July, and at least 31 people died in a conflict between criminal gangs inside a penitentiary in Guayaquil.