Noriega not moving to luxury cell says prison director

Some prisoners  in have ended up with cells as near to luxury as you can get in Panama’s overcrowded hell hole  La Joya (The jewel).

Reports have been published of selected prisoners with connections and money getting a “suite” with kitchen, microwave, TV and more.

There was even a scandal not too far back of prisoners having sexual encounters with female lawyers.

But former dictator Manuel Antonio Noriega, who will be incarcerated in the more upscale El Renacer prison, near the Gamboa Resort, will not be living in style according to  Prison Director Angel Calderón. ‘He will have a bed, a table and a chair," he said.

Calderón said that the cell being prepared for Noriega is being paid for through a donation from an international agency but denied   reports that it will be "luxurious."

"Noriega will not have a luxury cell," he said. "He will share a bathroom with other inmates." He denied that Noriega will have a stove, air conditioner and television.

On the other hand he  may be one of the first inmates to receive one of the  new prison uniforms  ordered by the national prison system.

It will be Noriega's third change of uniform since he replaced his general’s outfit for prison drabs in a U.S. prison over 22 years ago. After leaving the U.S. he he was jailed in France, and  when he is back home shortly he will be re-suited.

The new uniforms, of unspecified color, will be introduced gradually over the next few months, starting at El Renacer and Tinajita prisons. 

Renacer is usually host to white collar criminals.