On Monday, dozens of inmates at New York City's Rikers Island were reprimanded for failing to comply with the jail complex's new 9 p.m. curfew. According to sources, inmates were particularly mad that the curfew prevented them from seeing their favorite telenovela.

According to DNAinfo, the 9.pm. curfew is two hours earlier than the inmates' previous curfew and was implemented on Aug. 4 in an effort to stop violence in the jail. No inmates or staff members were hurt, but 68 prisoners were reportedly sprayed with "a chemical agent similar to pepper spray" and had to be treated.

New York Post reported that some prisoners were outraged when they learned that they would miss "En Otra Piel," a Telemundo telenovela that translates to "In Another Skin" in English.

"It's Telemundo soft porn," an unnamed Department of Corrections source told the newspaper. "They went nuts because they are being locked up at 9 p.m. and missing all of their favorite TV shows."

News of the Rikers Island's inmates' dedication to the Spanish language soap opera has reached Silvana Arias, who plays Mayte Carvajal on "En Otra Piel."

"Maybe guys in jails like the passion that we Latinas have," she said in an interview with New York Post. "When we say, 'I love you,' we say it with so much passion, maybe they like that."

A Department of Correction source said there has been no additional riots in the wing since Monday.

"I laughed because I couldn't believe it. ... I thought it was funny that they were so upset they couldn't watch us, but it's also sad that they don't have any other entertainment," Arias said. "Maybe we should try giving them salsa classes. Maybe they need some music or instruments."

The Peruvian actress also suggested that inmates are fans of her show because "love" is a universal thing.

"You don't need to speak Spanish to watch us," Arias said. "We have pretty girls and gorgeous guys, so we are fun to watch."
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Follow Scharon Harding on Twitter: @ScharHar.

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