Four Inmates Die in Oklahoma Prison Brawl

Three prisoners died on Saturday at the Cimarron Correctional Facility in Cushing, a town between Tulsa and Oklahoma City, while another five were injured and transported to a hospital where one of them died overnight from his wounds.

At least three of the dead had knife wounds, a spokesman for the penitentiary, which is managed by the privately-run Corrections Corporation of America, said.

A prison guard, who was not hurt, was in the same medium-security wing of the prison where the fight broke out – and was quickly over – as prisoners were being let out of their cells.

The Oklahoma state prisons department, which oversees the prison, and the firm contracted to run it are investigating the incident, which comes after 200 to 300 of the prison’s roughly 1,600 inmates were involved in a brawl there in June, with 11 inmates being taken to hospitals afterwards.

The prison has been on lockdown since Saturday and nobody may visit or move about within the facility until security can be guaranteed, authorities say.