Latvian Ministry of Justice reports that minister Inese Lībiņa-Egnere has met with Chief of Prison Administration Dmitrijs Kaļins and Warden of Riga Central Prison Raivis Runcis. According to the two of them, the recent escape from Riga Central Prison is “an exception from the rule”.
This is why society can feel safe. “An inspection is initiated to determine what happened. All possible risks are identified, the possibility of such situations repeating is completely ruled out,” as mentioned in the press-release from the ministry.
The minister of justice has ordered an investigation to determine what happened, as well as a comprehensive assessment of the prison system, and the adequacy of procedures, infrastructure and other resources.
When asked by BNN if someone in the Prison Administration or any of the prison’s workers could receive a disciplinary or other penalty, the Ministry of Justice press-representative explained:
available information suggests this specific prison escape was not planned
and was not assisted be any prison guards. This is why any penalties could be decided on after the end of the inspection.
After the meeting Lībiņa-Egnere said all services have told her:
the problems that were used in the Central Prison escape have since been completely prevented.
“The situation in other prisons in Latvia is completely under control. The system as a whole is under evaluation after the escape attempt from Riga Central Prison. The prison infrastructure is both morally and physically outdated: construction of a new prison in Liepāja and a new training centre in Olaine has only just begun,” explains the minister.
“The most important thing I stressed before and what everything should keep in mind,
is that prisons have a shortage of workers.
There are close to 400 vacant positions at the moment. It is in the interest of our country’s domestic security to attract workers to existing prisons, and it is equally important in the context of the new Liepāja Prison. The wage issue needs to be resolved in the context of next year’s budget priorities to ensure a sufficient number of workers and their professionalism,” Lībiņa-Egnere mentions in the ministry’s press-release.
A criminal procedure is initiated over the recent prison escape attempt. In the interest of the investigation no additional information is reported at this time.
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