Benevento prison unrest: 140% overcrowding, cells destroyed, no injuries

In the Benevento prison, which holds 361 inmates in a facility designed for 259 (a 140% occupancy rate), a protest on Sunday devastated the theatre section, rendering 14 cells completely unusable. The unrest was quelled without any injuries after a negotiation team and the Prison Police Operational Intervention Group restored order through dialogue.

Detention‑rights guarantors Samuele Ciambriello (Campania) and Patrizia Sannino (Benevento province) inspected the prison, meeting director Marianna Adanti, the unit commander, educators and a delegation of inmates from section G1 who did not take part in the disturbances. Inmates said the protest stemmed from demands for transfers to institutions offering study and work opportunities and highlighted the lack of therapeutic activities, especially for elderly and psychiatric prisoners. The inspection also drew attention to a mental‑health ward on the fourth floor that has been closed for over two years despite growing needs. The area remains under judicial seizure.