A 30 year old Dublin man has died after being found hanging by a shoelace in his cell in Portlaoise prison on Saturday. He is Anthony Smith of Casement Villas, Dun Laoghaire.
The victim, who had been transferred to Portlaoise from Mountjoy Prison in Dublin a few days previously, is the seventh prisoner to die in Irish jails so far this year.
Prison officers attempted to resuscitate him after he was discovered hanging from the window bars of his cell at about 2.15 p.m. on Saturday. The prisoner was moved to Portlaoise General Hospital but was dead on arrival.
A Department of Justice spokeswoman said yesterday the death would be the subject of a coroner's inquiry. It would also be considered by the suicide prevention group, in line with recommendations made in the 1991 report of the advisory group on prison deaths.
Smith was serving a 21 month sentence for 14 charges covering a range of offences including larceny and receiving stolen goods. He entered Mountjoy last January. According to the Department spokeswoman, he shared the cell with one other prisoner, who was working in the prison kitchens when the hanging occurred.
In June opposition parties called on the Government to reform the prison system following the death of a young remand prisoner in St Patrick's Institution in Dublin. Mr Thomas Keane, from Crumlin, died by hanging less than a day after being remanded to the prison.
The previous month, Carol Ann Daly (21) died in her cell in Mountjoy, having left a note saying she was taking her own life because of her drug problem.