INDIANA — According to a release issued by Susan McNaughton, Pennsylvania Department of Corrections Communications Director, state officials are investigating the death of an inmate that occurred at the State Correctional Institution (SCI) at Pine Grove.
At approximately 10 p.m. on Jan. 1, officers at SCI Pine Grove found inmate Luis Santiago, 32, unresponsive in his cell. Staff immediately administered CPR, and the inmate was taken to Indiana Regional Medical Center by ambulance at 10:35 p.m., where he was pronounced dead at 11:35 p.m. on Jan. 1.
The Indiana County Coroner’s Office, Pennsylvania State Police Troop A, Indiana and the Department of Corrections are conducting investigations.
Santiago, who was serving a 2½- to 10-year sentence for aggravated assault with serious bodily injury out of Berks County, had been housed at the prison since July 10, 2018.
The inmate’s next of kin on file with the Department of Corrections has been notified, according to the release, which added that Santiago’s cellmate was being interviewed.