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'Death camp' fears in notorious El Salvador prison as horror Google Maps image goes viral

WARNING, DISTRESSING CONTENT: With lawyers unable to reach a US citizen they say is wrongly incarcerated inside El Salvador's CECOT prison, a grim picture showing a red stain has sparked panic

[El salvador]

People are getting a bit nervous about what's going on in El Salvador(Image: AFP via Getty Images)

A grim aerial picture of the notorious El Salvador CECOT prison is going viral, with people pleading for the truth.

On Google Maps for the world to see a drone snap of the maximum security prison shows what appears to be a giant pool of blood. Despite being unverified, the picture has unsettled social media users and human rights lawyers alike with wild conspiracy theories flying around.

Many have suggested the red stain on the map could be the blood of prisoners, with CECOT infamous for being a place people dont come out of. One person suggested the establishment which has a capacity limit of 40,000 couldnt house its inmates forever, [so have] got to get rid of them somehow.

[google maps ]

This image has unsettled many who have seen it(Image: GoogleMaps)

The mega-prison is the main tool for El Salvadors dictator President Nayib Bukele, who launched a brutal crackdown on the violent gangs that ran rampant through his country when he came to power in 2019.

Bukele got to work very quickly, arresting people in the thousands and throwing around 2% of his population in jail. CECOT itself houses more than 12,000 gang members crammed into four-tier bunks in 80-man cells.

Inmates are compelled to eat with their hands as cutlery is prohibited and they're only allowed out of their cells for half an hour each day. The prison relies solely on artificial light, meaning those who have been incarcerated haven't seen natural daylight since their arrival and sleep is a rarity.

[prisoners ]

The prison houses thousands of alleged gang members (Image: Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

Now this troubling Google Maps photo has got people worried, especially after US President Donald Trump decided CECOT was the perfect destination to send more than 200 men he wanted to get rid of.

One of these men was innocent Maryland father Kilmar Abrego Garcia, someone who Trumps lawyers have admitted was deported by mistake.

Garcias family and those fighting for his release are currently unable to contact him, sparking fears he might have died on the inside heaping another level of speculation on to the Google Maps pictures.

He wont be returned because hes dead. CECOT is a death camp, someone wrote on social media while sharing the grim image.

[CECOT prison]

Many have claimed the prison is a 'death camp' (Image: AFP via Getty Images)

Never been more obvious that they killed this guy and have no clue what to do to bring him back. Check out the sat photos of CECOT. Literally is a death camp, another theorised.

The CECOT prison has been described as a black hole of human rights, with the press rarely able to catch a glimpse of what really goes on inside.

Although its worth noting the Google Maps picture was taken on March 20, 2024 so not a current indication of the prison its also hard to ignore the voices damning the facility.

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