Prisoner found dead in Pedrinhas prison complex.

From Agência Brasil

An inmate was found dead in the early hours of today (27) in one of the cells at the Provisional Detention Center of the Pedrinhas penitentiary complex, in São Luís. According to the Maranhão Penitentiary Administration Secretariat (Sejap), he was identified as João Batista Veloso dos Santos.

The body was sent to the Institute of Forensic Medicine (IML), and the department ordered an investigation into the case. Preliminary data indicates that the prisoner was killed by hanging. The inmates who were in the same cell as him will be questioned by the police. The investigations are being conducted by the Sejap Internal Affairs Department and the Civil Police.

With this case, the number of deaths in cells at the Pedrinhas prison complex this year rises to three. In March, two other inmates were murdered in the prison. In January, however, Jocean Soares Dantas, a prisoner serving time in one of the units, was killed with two shots after an attempted escape. He had feigned illness and was taken to the infirmary, where he fought with a guard.

In 2013 there were 47 homicides in Pedrinhas, and last year there were another 14. According to authorities, most of the murders were motivated by conflicts between rival factions. To separate the groups, the prison underwent a restructuring of the complex at the beginning of the year, which, according to the secretariat, inhibited the confrontations.