A prison cook speaks out two years after Núria's murder: "I thought it could happen to me"

BarcelonaMontse says she's only ever doubted her job security once. It was two years ago today, when a colleague sent her a WhatsApp message alerting her that an inmate had stabbed Núria López in the kitchen of Mas de Enric prison and then committed suicide. "At that moment, you do think, 'Holy crap, where am I working?' I thought it could happen to me."

Until March 13, 2024, Montse had never considered that her job could frighten her. Not even when she first started working as a cook in prison, and the security protocols, she recalls, were much less stringent than they are now. She says she never wants to know why inmates end up in prison, and maintains that she feels "safer inside than outside" of work: "Some people are surprised, but I'm not afraid. Could it happen to me someday? I don't know, I hope not. When I'm afraid, it's on the street, that strangers might do something to me. But in there..."

Lucas is also a cook in a prison. Both he and Montse use nicknames to avoid being identified. Two years after the crime in Mas d'Enric, they both agree that security reinforcements were slow to arrive and criticize the fact that so much the wage increases that ended the protests after the crime, asthe status of law enforcement officers, The changes have reached a large portion of prison staff, but not those who work where the victim of the crime that triggered all these changes worked. Montse runs the cafeteria at a prison, and on each shift they work with approximately 15 inmates. She explains that she has a very good relationship with them and that many ask to work in the cafeteria because of the work environment and because it's one of the best-paid jobs for prisoners. Cafeterias are located in the outermost part of the prison complex and serve the staff. Despite their name, they also cook and serve meals and, therefore, use knives and other kitchen utensils. In contrast, prison kitchens—like the one at Mas de Enric, where Núria López worked—are inside the facility and prepare food for the inmates. Beyond that, Montse questions whether there are other differences that justify why the security measures implemented are different. She maintains that in the cafe where she works, knives are still not tied to the work surfaces, one of the measures the Justice Department agreed upon for all kitchens to prevent a repeat of the crime. However, they are tied in the kitchen where Lucas works. Justice Department sources indicate that cutting utensils have been secured "in most" cafes and kitchens, and that in both places, food is purchased pre-cut to minimize knife use.

Restrictions and more cameras

It also affects both cafeterias and kitchens the circular that prevents inmates identified as having a high risk of recidivism from working or who are serving sentences for violent crimes or serious injuries and who It also bars them from other jobsAnother change is that kitchen and cafeteria workers now wear masks. walkie-talkies to alert of any incident. Furthermore, Justícia recalls that after the crime, it was established that surveillance cameras must cover all areas of the kitchens, except for cold storage rooms and warehouses, and notes that the project to do so has already been commissioned for Mas d'Enric and the Youth Prison.

Unlike Montse, Lucas says that before the murder he had already questioned the security measures at his workplace. This was when he experienced an argument or tense moment with an inmate, fearing that the officers' surveillance did not cover the entire kitchen and its different areas. Now there are cameras in the kitchen where he works, but he says it was "one of the few" that didn't have them at the time of the crime and regrets that it took almost a year after the murder to install them.

Uneven Changes

A year ago, on the first anniversary of the murder, the Minister of Justice, Ramon Espadaler, responded to a long-standing demand from prison guards, a demand that had intensified in the wake of the crime, and promised that they would be granted the status of law enforcement officers. Although the government had previously maintained that the decision fell under state jurisdiction, a year ago Justice promised to grant this prerogative to prison officials without clarifying what legal instrument it would use to do so.The promise was fulfilled a month and a half ago, and the status of law enforcement officer It also extended to prison managers, psychologists, educators, lawyers, and social workers.However, it does not include the workers at the Center for Initiatives for Reintegration (CIRE), which employs, among others, the prison cooks. Lucas says he understands that the officers fought to achieve this recognition, and he's glad they have it, but he questions why all prison workers weren't included. The day the measure was announced, Montse says, it was clear the officers were happy in the cafeteria. "It's politics. They knew how to sell themselves and even managed to get their hazard pay increased because of what happened to someone at CIRE, and we, the cooks who work at CIRE, are at the bottom of the pyramid and haven't received any raise."