For­mer na­tion­al se­cu­ri­ty min­is­ter Stu­art Young has de­nied claims by Prime Min­is­ter Kam­la Per­sad-Bisses­sar that the for­mer PNM ad­min­is­tra­tion en­abled the for­ma­tion of a crim­i­nal syn­di­cate in­side the prison sys­tem by group­ing gang lead­ers to­geth­er in Build­ing 13 at the Max­i­mum Se­cu­ri­ty Prison.

Speak­ing dur­ing Mon­day’s par­lia­men­tary de­bate on the ex­ten­sion of the state of emer­gency, Per­sad-Bisses­sar ac­cused Young of clus­ter­ing high-risk in­mates dur­ing his tenure, say­ing this cre­at­ed con­di­tions for gang co­or­di­na­tion and crim­i­nal op­er­a­tions be­hind bars.

“Then, as Min­is­ter of Na­tion­al Se­cu­ri­ty, the mem­ber brought his pen out. What did he do? He took all the main king­pins and he put them in a build­ing called Build­ing 13,” Per­sad-Bisses­sar said.