Inmate dies at Hakea Prison weeks after teenager’s death in custody

An inmate has died in a Perth prison following a suspected “medical episode” just weeks after a teenager took his own life.

WARNING: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised that this article contains the name of a deceased person.

An Indigenous inmate at Hakea Prison in Perth has died following a suspected “medical episode”.

A Department of Justice spokesperson said the 41-year-old man was found unresponsive in his cell midmorning on Monday.

“Prison officers and medical staff attempted to revive the prisoner,” the spokesperson said.

“He was declared deceased at the site.

“Preliminary reports indicated the man had suffered a medical episode.”

The man died at the maximum security Hakea Prison in Canning Vale. Picture: 9 News

The man’s family has been notified.

WA Police will prepare a report for the coroner, as is mandatory for deaths in custody.

It comes weeks after Indigenous teenager Cleveland Dodd took his own life at Casuarina Prison’s Unit 18 juvenile correctional facility.

He used his intercom to tell officers he was killing himself 16 minutes before they found him unresponsive.

The 16-year-old boy was the first recorded death in WA’s youth detention system.

There have been 80 deaths in custody across Australia this year, according to the Australian Institute of Criminology.

Originally published as Inmate dies at Hakea Prison weeks after teenager’s death in custody