AUTHORITIES in Honduras forced inmates to sit half-naked in tight rows while they searched for contraband in a sweep of prisons.
The crackdown is similar to the harsh tactics of neighbouring El Salvador, where prisoners are forced to keep their heads bowed and their hands on the back of their necks.
The prison sweep demonstrated the Honduran government's resolve to crackdown on gangs following last Tuesday's gang-related massacre of 46 female inmates in the worst atrocity at a women's prison in recent memory.
Cops also arrested a suspect in a weekend pool hall shooting that killed 11 people.
Police said they were considering the possibility that the pool hall shooting on Saturday was related to the prison violence.
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On Monday, the military police - who have taken charge of the nation's prisons - fanned out across several prisons, emptying cell blocks and forcing inmates to sit in rows, spread-legged and nestled against one another.
The sweeps are part of the "Fe y Esperanza" operation, or "Faith and Hope" in English.
Such tactics, which see inmates clad only in shorts, their heads bowed onto the backs of the men in front of them were made famous last year by Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele during his crackdown on gangs.
In February, shocking pictures showed ultra-violent gang members packed together like sardines into the "world's largest" mega-prison.
The first batch of tattooed inmates have arrived in the new "inescapable" jail in El Salvador - able to house up to 40,000 gangsters.
Bukele's harsh tactics have led to allegations of human rights abuse but also proved popular with residents in the Central American country where communities are emerging from the oppression of gang extortion and violence.
The military police in Honduras said they searched the empty cellblocks and found hundreds of rounds of ammunition, pistols, assault rifles and grenades.
As in El Salvador, police distributed videos of the prison raids, accompanied by music.
Women inmates were also forced to sit in prison yards with their hands on their necks, but female military police officers allowed them to keep their shirts on.
One search took place at a men's penitentiary in Tamara, the same town where the women's prison massacre occurred on June 20.
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It took place at the women's prison in Tamara, northeast of Honduras' capital, and has outraged the country, sparked raids, curfews and a crackdown.
In that massacre, female inmates belonging to the Barrio 18 street gang smuggled in guns, machetes and a flammable liquid.
They subdued guards and burst into cell blocks housing members of a rival gang.
They sprayed the victims with gunfire, hacked to death others and then locked their cells and set the victims on fire.
In 2019, at least 16 prisoners died during fighting inside an overcrowded prison in Honduras after gangs armed with guns, knives and machetes clashed during dinner time.
While Saturday's killings at a pool hall in the city of Choloma, in Cortes province, happened far to the north of Tamara, the two events could be related, according to the police.
National Police Commissioner Miguel Prez Suazo said authorities have detained one suspect in the pool hall killings and were looking for others.
He said: "We do not rule out these crimes could be some sort of revenge for what happened in the women's prison.
"Choloma is reputed to be the turf of the Barrio 18 gang, which would make it a logical place to target their members.
"But police said the suspect detained Monday also allegedly belonged to Barrio 18."
Pres Suazo added: "We also do no rule out that it could have been some type of revenge by criminals against civilians."
Honduran President Xiomara Castro has put the military police in charge of the country's poorly-run prisons and given them a year to train new guards.
She also announced security measures including curfews in the Choloma area, as well as raids, captures and checkpoints 24 hours a day.
The curfew in Choloma will run from 9pm until 4am.
The curfew in the nearby city of San Pedro Sula will begin on July 4.
