An inmate at the state prison in Otay Mesa lay dead in a cell for two to three days before being discovered Monday, the Times of San Diego has learned.
The inmate, James Acuna, who began serving a 16-year sentence at Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility in October 2014, was found dead Monday, according to Vicky Waters, a spokeswoman for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
Homicide detectives from the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department were called to the South County prison around noon Monday. An initial examination by the Medical Examiner’s Office determined Acuna, 58, had been dead for two or three days, said Lt. Ken Nelson.
Nelson said there weren’t any “overt indications of foul play” and that a toxicology report is pending.
Acuna was sentenced in Los Angeles County for assault with a deadly weapon as a second striker. He served a six-year term beginning in 1984 for robbery with a firearm, and served an eight-year term beginning in 2000 for burglary.
No other details can be released as an investigation is underway, Waters said. She declined to comment as to whether prison employees conducted head counts during the days Acuna was dead.
A detailed report from the Medical Examiner’s Office was also unavailable as the case is sealed.