The number of suspicious deaths in two prisons in Ribeirão das Neves, metropolitan region of Belo Horizonte, reached 14. The deaths have been registered since December last year and the main suspicion is that they are related to the use of K drugs in penitentiaries. The most recent death occurred on Friday (19). The victims came from the Antônio Dutra Ladeira and Inspector José Matinho Drumond penitentiaries.
The deaths are investigated by the Minas Gerais Penitentiary Department (Depen-MG) and the Civil Police. The corporation claimed to be awaiting the completion of toxicological reports on the victims and the material seized to define the dynamics of the deaths.
According to the corporation, each case is investigated individually and “depending on the complexity, other steps must be taken to clarify the facts”.
These drugs, initially distributed in prisons, were created in laboratories and, although they are linked to marijuana, they do not come from the cannabis sativa plant and have an effect up to a hundred times more powerful than a common narcotic.
Given the possibility of deaths being linked to drug use, the Minas Gerais State Department of Justice and Security states that searches are routinely carried out on visitors and cells, with the aim of preventing the entry and permanence of illicit materials in the units. prisons.
“Specifically, Depen-MG carries out a major internal campaign on the harms of alcohol and drug consumption, in partnership with the Subsecretariat for Drug Policies, from Sejusp”, says the note released by the ministry. (Estadão Conteúdo)
