Overcrowding alarm at Turin's prison in October 2026
On 8 October 2026 Turin's remand prison (casa circondariale) reached a population of 1,608 inmates, a figure that, according to the Osapp union, would be a record since the 2006 amnesty (indulto). The independent prison police union described the situation as "explosive," with more than two hundred admissions a month and a shortage of more than a hundred officers and assistants in the Prison Police corps [1][2].
The union's complaint
According to workers' representatives, overcrowding, the presence of inmates of many different nationalities, the lack of space and the deterioration of facilities are fuelling growing tension and a series of critical incidents, posing risks to the safety of both staff and the inmate population [1].
"We are now completely adrift," said Leo Beneduci, Osapp's general secretary, in a statement. "All this is happening amid the most deafening silence from politicians and institutions" [1][2].
An appeal gone unheard
Some weeks earlier, Osapp had appealed to political representatives of every stripe from the City of Turin and the Piedmont Region, asking them to visit the institution and meet the staff who work there every day. "With a few exceptions, the others remained completely still and inert — an inertia we also see at the level of the regional and central administration, while the situation inside the prison keeps getting worse," Beneduci said [1][2].
Staff shortages and working conditions
According to the sector's unions, Turin is short of more than 100 officers and assistants in the Prison Police corps. This shortage forces staff into punishing shift patterns, hard to reconcile with dignified and safe working conditions. "Staff are subjected every day to inhuman shifts and continuous psychological and physical stress — a condition that seriously endangers both workers' health and the safety of the whole institution," Osapp's general secretary said [1][2].
The union has called for urgent action to tackle overcrowding, fill staffing shortages and restore conditions of safety, hygiene and liveability inside the remand prison [1].
Related articles: Osapp
Sources
- TorinoOggi — 9 October 2026
- ANSA Piemonte — 9 October 2026