Inmates riot, set fires at prison in Indonesia's Aceh

BANDA ACEH, Indonesia – Indonesian security forces have retaken control of a prison in the country's west following a riot.

Aceh province correctional official Edy Hardoyo said the riot began Thursday when three inmates refused to be transferred to another prison. Other inmates joined in the protest before it turned violent.

Angered inmates torched the Banda Aceh prison, which has a capacity to house 400 inmates but now has more than 540 inmates. No one reported hurt in the riot.

Eight fire trucks were mobilized to extinguish the fire while hundreds of police and soldiers were being deployed around the prison to prevent prisoners from escaping.

Riots and jailbreaks are common in Indonesia, where overcrowding has become a problem in prisons that are struggling to cope with poor funding.