Homicide investigation underway at Corcoran Prison after inmate found dead in cell
FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- A homicide investigation is underway inside the California State Prison in Corcoran after an inmate was found dead in his cell.
Officers say they heard a loud noise during security checks just before 9 p.m. Friday night.
When they followed the noise it led them to a cell, where 24-year-old Johnny Lopez was lying unresponsive on the floor.
His cellmate, 34-year-old Eduardo Gutierrez, stood above him as prison staff ran in to try to save Lopez.
About an hour later, Lopez died.
The prison's Investigative Services Unit has launched an investigation into the incident.
Lopez was booked in August 2017 with a three-year sentence for first-degree burglary out of Ventura County.
Gutierrez was transferred in May 2013 from San Diego County with a 24-year sentence for voluntary manslaughter, personal use of a deadly weapon, and possession/manufacture of a deadly weapon as a second-striker.
