Eleven corrections officers were injured during multiple inmate attacks this past week at Rikers Island jail in New York City.
There were five attacks this week by gang members who broke officers’ ribs, gave them concussions, and caused them to suffer other injuries, according to an internal incident report obtained by the New York Daily News.
Thirteen inmates, 11 of them gang members, attacked four corrections officers on Tuesday, one of whom suffered broken ribs and a broken hand after being hit with a fire extinguisher.
A second attack occurred on March 19, with 13 gang members who punched officers in the face and pelted objects at them. At least three officers were injured in that case.
A third incident occurred on March 20 involving five inmates and one officer suffering injuries.
A fourth attack occurred on March 22 when a Crips gang member punched an officer in the side of the head, causing the officer to hit his head on a wall and suffer a concussion. The officer also needed five staples in his head.
The fifth assault on Thursday injured one officer. All of the attacked officers received treatment for their injuries.
“The safety of those who work in our facilities is always our first priority,” Correction Department spokesman Peter Thorne told the Daily News. “Any attack is reprehensible, and we are pursuing re-arrest of the individuals involved.”
Corrections’officers who work at Riker’s Island have had to deal with their fair share of inmate beatdowns. In December 2020, four corrections officers were injured after an inmate attacked them as he was being let out of his cell.
And in February 2018, several Rikers Island inmates brutally attacked a guard, causing him to suffer a brain bleed and a broken spinal column near his neck.
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