A new prison for 2,240 inmates
After nearly a decade, the City of Buenos Aires announced on Tuesday the completion of the new Marcos Paz penitentiary, a project intended to allow the definitive closure of the Villa Devoto prison, a long-standing demand of neighborhood residents. The complex, which the city described as the most modern penitentiary in Argentina, was built on 80 hectares and has four maximum-security housing units with capacity for 2,240 inmates.[S1][S2]
The government of Jorge Macri said in a statement that the handover agreement will be signed on Thursday by national Security Minister Alejandra Monteoliva and her city counterpart Horacio Giménez. The transfer of prisoners still held at the old facility will begin after the signing. The Villa Devoto prison will be visited by Pope Leo XIV on Wednesday, November 11, at 8 a.m. as part of his tour of Argentina.[S1][S2]
Gradual transfer and unified command
A Unified Federal Command will be created, made up of federal security forces, the City of Buenos Aires and the province of Buenos Aires, to plan, coordinate and execute the operation to move prisoners from Villa Devoto to Marcos Paz. According to the city government, the transfer will be gradual and progressive to guarantee security and control conditions throughout all stages.[S1][S2][S3]
The operational plan for the transfer takes into account the criminological profile of each prisoner and risk prevention during the journey, as well as liaison mechanisms, early warning, information exchange and immediate response to possible incidents or contingencies. Sources from the city executive told Clarín that for Villa Devoto to be vacated, the Federal Penitentiary Service must first take possession of the new site and put the Marcos Paz prison into operation. Only then can the Justice system authorize the transfer of detainees.[S1][S2][S3]
A long-delayed project
The agreement to build the new prison was signed in 2018, but it was suspended during the administration of Horacio Rodríguez Larreta and work was halted for five years amid a dispute over coparticipation funds that the national government, during Alberto Fernández's presidency, had taken from the city. The government finally resumed the works in December 2024. The goal is not only to deactivate the Villa Devoto prison, built in 1927, but also to relieve overcrowded police stations and jails in Buenos Aires, which have been the scene of several prisoner escapes amid prison overcrowding.[S1][S2][S3]
According to Clarín, the new Marcos Paz complex will have four units with an administration building, a programs and services building for the internal security command of the unit, a health area, videoconference rooms for inmates and professionals, visiting areas, a gym and an educational sector for work and job training workshops. There will also be a space for the food ration distributor and a campus determined by housing modules divided into five independent sectors with soccer fields and areas for vegetable gardens.[S1]
