A GROUP of California prisoners tried to infect themselves with Covid-19 in a futile bid to win freedom, said a senior police official yesterday.

Inmates at a facility in Castaic, north of Los Angeles, were filmed sharing a disposable cup and sniffing a used mask while crowded together.

“Somehow, there was some mistaken belief among the inmate population that if they tested positive, that there was a way to force our hand and somehow release more inmates out of our jail environment – and that’s not going to happen,” said county sheriff Alex Villanueva.

Twenty-one inmates tested positive in the prison section where the video was shot “as a result of the behaviour”, he added.

The activity came to light as prison officials investigated a broader spike in coronavirus cases behind bars, with nearly 40% of those incarcerated in Los Angeles county now in quarantine.

The county has 11,700 inmates after more than 5,000 were released in a pre-emptive measure to avoid a catastrophic virus outbreak.

Still, 357 prisoners have tested positive in the US’ largest prison population.

The footage is “just a sampling of the many other videos being reviewed and used in the ongoing investigation”, said John Satterfield, a lieutenant at the sheriff’s department.

Another video showed prisoners sipping hot water in a bid to raise their temperature before a medical check.

The men were “trying to falsely elevate their temperature readings” to emulate one of the disease’s symptoms, said Villanueva.

None of the prisoners has admitted to seeking to infect themselves.

Prison reform advocates denied the claim, and accused Villanueva of seeking to “demonise incarcerated people”.

The sheriff’s “shameful” allegations “sensationalise the acute fear of the incarcerated population”, said campaigner Patrisse Cullors in a statement calling for the release of more inmates.

It is not clear how the outbreak at the North County Correctional Facility in Castaic began. – AFP, May 12, 2020.