Inmates at a jail in rural North Carolina took over parts of the facility early Monday, overpowering staff members and taking two guards hostage in a standoff that ended hours later, according to state and local officials.
Officials have not explained what prompted the inmates to take over the jail, the Bertie-Martin Regional Detention Center in Windsor, N.C., about 120 miles northeast of Raleigh. Nor have they said how the inmates managed to control portions of the jail.
The takeover began around 5 a.m., when there were 88 inmates and three guards inside the facility, according to the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation. The inmates assaulted the guards, the bureau said. One guard escaped, and the others were taken hostage.
Around 9:30 a.m., the bureau said, negotiations led to the release of the two guards; 18 inmates were also taken in by the authorities. Officials have not explained the nature of those negotiations. Details about the guards’ injuries have also not been released, but officials said they were receiving medical treatment on Monday.
By 2 p.m., the bureau said it had accounted for all inmates and transferred them to other facilities for housing.
The bureau added that the jail would remain “secured while personnel assess the extent of the damage.”
Tyrone Ruffin, the Bertie County sheriff, said in a news conference on Monday afternoon that “there has been some misinformation and some concerns raised about the facility and the care of the inmates.”
He added that after his team got the situation under control, he would “address the issues of the facilities and care of the inmates with the public as the investigation goes on.”
More than 20 law enforcement agencies were at the jail on Monday afternoon, including the F.B.I.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
