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8 guards injured during attacks by inmates at CNY max security prison

A series of attacks took place Aug. 10 at Auburn Correctional Facility, leaving injuries ranging from stab wounds to a broken nose

Auburn Correctional

The Auburn Correctional Facility in Cayuga County is among 54 New York state correctional facilities. State lawmakers want to close two prisons in the next year. (Photo Michael Greenlar, Syracuse.com/MCT)

Michael Greenlar/Syracuse.com

By James McClendon
syracuse.com

AUBURN, N.Y. — Eight guards were injured during an Aug. 10 attack by inmates at a Central New York maximum security prison, correctional officer union officials said.

At about 7:43 a.m., two Auburn Correctional Facility officers were escorting a prisoner from the facility’s mess hall when the prisoner suddenly turned and began punching one of the officers in the face, union officials with the New York State Correctional Officers & Police Benevolent Association said Thursday in a news release.

Several officers responded to the area and helped put the inmate into a body hold, officials said. They initially forced him against a wall before forcing him to the ground, they said.

Eventually they were able to remove the inmate from the mess hall area, officials said.

The guard who was attacked suffered a broken nose and was treated at Auburn Community Hospital, officials said.

During the first attack, a second inmate began yelling and approaching guards, officials said. An officer stepped in front of the inmate, who began stabbing at the officer’s neck and face, they said.

The inmate was eventually brought to the ground by several officers, handcuffed and taken from the area, officials said.

The injured officer was taken to Auburn Community Hospital with a stab wound to the neck, officials said.

A make-shift weapon sharpened on one end was later found during a search of inmates’ cells after the attacks, according to the release. Officials did not say if the weapon was used in the attack.

Both inmates involved in the attacks were taken to Five Points Correctional Facility, a maximum security prison in Romulus, according to the release.

The first inmate, 31, is serving a 23-year sentence after a 2016 conviction for first-degree assault in Monroe County, officials said. The second inmate, 33, is serving a 12-year sentence after being convicted of multiple drug felonies in Nassau County, they said.

During the attacks, 15 other inmates were seen making threats against officers, officials said. Those inmates were all returned to their cells and face disciplinary charges for their actions, according to the release.

Six other officers were injured in the attacks, four of whom were taken to Auburn Community Hospital for further treatment, officials said.

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