Man found hanged in Mountjoy prison cell

A man (38) has been found dead in a cell at Dublin's Mountjoy prison.

The man, who is from Dublin and had been serving an 18-month sentence, was found hanging at around 3.25am today.

An Irish Prison Service spokeswoman said the man had asked to be placed on protection, claiming he was at risk from other prisoners on his wing. It is understood he was involved in a row yesterday.

He was then moved to a single-occupancy cell on C2 wing.

The spokeswoman said he was put on special observation and had been checked just before 3am.

When he was checked again at 3.25am, he was seen to be hanging in the cell. Resuscitation was attempted at the scene, and the man was taken by ambulance to the nearby Mater Hospital. He was pronounced dead at 4.08am.

She said the man had no history of self-harm.

The man had been placed in a single-occupancy cell, as required under new procedures introduced in the wake of the murder of Gary Douch (21), in a communal cell at the prison.

Under the new procedures, prisoners requesting protection are housed in single-occupancy cells for at least 24 hours.

Opposition parties called for immediate action to alleviated the poor conditions at the antiquated and overcrowded prison, which has been the scene of a number of violent incidents in recent weeks.

Brendan Howlin, the Labour Party's justice spokesman, called for a full investigation into today's death.

"Prisoners are punished by the courts for their offences by being deprived of their liberty, but the opportunity for rehabilitation, education and training must also be part of the prison regime," he said. "It is virtually impossible to provide these under current conditions in Mountjoy.

"The death places a particular obligation on the Minister for Justice to publish the report of the Inspector of Prisons, Dermot Kinlen, which he received several weeks ago and which he is still refusing to publish."

Fine Gael's Jim O'Keeffe called for Mr Kinlen to be given the task of carrying out another review of Mountjoy. investigation into facilities at the institution.

"This is another example of the difficulties being experienced in Mountjoy, which have reached a peak in the last few months," said Mr O'Keeffe. "Whereas the killing of Gary Douch was a direct result of overcrowding, this case seems to point to a gap in the facilities available in the prison.

"The Prisons Inspector should be asked to conduct an independent assessment of the current situation in Mountjoy, with a particular focus on rehabilitation services, sport and recreation facilities, and medical and psychiatric services."