At least 200 prisoners are still at large following a jail break from a minimum-security prison in Brazil.<br /><br /> At least 500 escaped after violence broke out on Thursday.<br /><br /> State prison officials say around half were recaptured within hours of the break but the others remain at large.<br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /> Polícia captura 335 fugitivos da Penitenciária de Jardinópolis (SP)https://t.co/BsKlIG2Ass pic.twitter.com/1eDWYb96ZY— O Globo Brasil (@OGloboPolitica) September 30, 2016<br /> <br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /> Jardinopolis prison<br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /> The inmates fled from the Jardinopolis open prison, around 160 kilometres northwest of Sao Paulo, Brazil’s second city.<br /><br /> Officials say the inmates had set fire to several cells in one wing of the prison during a routine morning call.<br /><br /> Scores of prisoners knocked down a four-metre high mesh security fence in the chaos that ensued. They fled into nearby fields.<br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /> Centenas de presos fugiram após rebelião em presídio de Jardinópolis, em SP. Segundo parentes dos detentos, causa do motim foi superlotação. pic.twitter.com/jF3lp6SGHL— BandNews TV (@TvBandnews) September 29, 2016<br /> <br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /> Has anyone been hurt?<br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /> There was no immediate word on possible deaths or injuries among guards or inmates.<br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /> How many people were inside the prison?<br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /> The prison housed over 1,800 inmates, according to the Folha de S.Paulo newspaper.<br /><br /> It was only built to house 1,000.<br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /> Was overcrowding a trigger?<br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /> State authorities declined to comment on reported overcrowding at the facility.<br /><br /> They did not respond to a request for information about the type of crimes committed by prisoners housed there.<br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /> Is this kind of problem common in Brazil?<br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /> Yes.<br /><br /> Prison uprisings and escapes are frequent in the country, which has long been criticised by human rights organisations for its prison conditions.<br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /> Brazil’s prison population – fact check<br /><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /> The latest figures from the World Prison Brief and the Institute for Criminal Policy Research suggest Brazil has:<br /><br /> <br /><br /> 622,202 total prison population (including pre-trial detainees/ remand prisoners) <br /><br /> 584,758 in prison, 37,444 in police facilities <br /><br /> 371,884 – official capacity of prison system <br /><br /> 157.2% occupancy level, based on official capacity <br /><br /> <br /><br /> (Figures date from 31.12.2014. <br /><br /> More information can be found here<br />
