A prison riot occurred at the CERESO state prison in Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, Mexico, on March 4, 2009. During the riots, at least 20 people were killed and 15 were injured.^[1][2] Although a police spokesman stated that no police or jail guards were killed during the riots,^[2] the Red Cross said that two policemen had been killed.^[3] The riot was a fight among several rival gangs, the "Barrio Azteca", "Los Mexicles" and "Artistas Asesinos" (AA).^[4][5]

The riots began at roughly 7 AM local time (2 PM UTC), and lasted for about two hours.^[2] 14 members of the Aztecas "subjugated" a prison guard with knives and stole the guard's keys.^[5][6] The gang then opened several cells, releasing 170 prisoners.^[5] The prisoners forced their way into an area where members of the Mexicles and AA were meeting with family and friends during conjugal visits, and attacked them.^[7] During the riots, prisoners set blocks of prison cells on fire, stabbed each other with knives, or were beaten.^[1] Other prisoners used rifles and iron pins as weapons.^[4] In addition, some prisoners were thrown from the second story of buildings.^[4] Two of the 20 prisoners died at a local hospital, while the remainder died in the prison.^[8]

At least 50 members of the Mexican Army and 200 police were deployed to end the riots.^[7] An airplane and two helicopters were also used to quell the violence.^[2] Earlier in the day, 1,500 troops began entering the city in an effort to reduce drug-and-gang-related violence, which, over the last year, took the lives of 2,000 people in Ciudad Juárez.^[9]