Inmates over 60 increase by 30% in the Valencia region

THE number of prisoners in the Valencia Region over the age of 60 has increased by 30 per cent in just a little more than a year, official data shows.

Inmates over the age of 60 now account for 2 per cent of the regions prison population. This increase is linked to the economic crisis, experts say. While about a third are under 30, and another third aged 31 to 40; only 0.88 per cent are between the ages of 18 and 20.

There are currently 7,766 inmates locked up in the Valencia Region’s seven prisons. Of these 79 per cent have been convicted while the rest await trial. Of the convicted inmates, half are repeat offenders.

The majority (93 per cent) are men with 7,185 males to 581 females. There are currently 29 inmates serving sentences in the Alicante Province who are over 60. Many of these prisoners are serving sentences for fraud, embezzlement, theft and robbery.

Meanwhile, in Alicante Prison II in Villena there were a total of 1,262 male prisoners and 57 female as of June 1, of which nearly half are serving sentences between eight and 15-years.

While in Alicante Cumplimiento Prison in Fontcalent there were 867 men and 100 women the facilities were only meant to hold 800 people. Alicante’s Psychiatric Prison Hospital which caters to people from all over Spain with mental illness has 327 male patients and 39 female.

“Because of the economic crisis causing the inability to find work, increasing numbers of these types of prisoners are staying during the day at the prison, which is not really prepared for these extra number of inmates during the day,” an Acaip union official said.

By Nicole Hallett