9:00am | A 58-year old transient was discovered dead in his cell at the Long Beach Police Department Jail on Monday morning when he did not respond to staff members that arrived to serve him breakfast.
Police say there were no signs of trauma and he appeared to have died in his sleep, although the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office will conduct an investigation along with Long Beach homicide detectives, as is customary for this type of situation.
Staff discovered that the man was not responding around 5:20am on Monday morning. Paramedics and the jail nurse arrived and pronounced him deceased, and authorities say that he was likely dead for several hours by the time staff arrived. It appears the man died in his sleep but the Coroner’s Office will determine the cause of death in the coming days.
The man had been jailed since Saturday night, when police responded to a call from Long Beach Transit that a bus passenger was intoxicated near the Traffic Circle on Los Coyotes Diagonal. He was booked for public intoxication and also had an outstanding warrant.
Police are not releasing the man’s name as they attempt to notify his family. Anyone with information regarding this case should contact detectives Huge Cortes and Roger Zottneck at 562.570.7244.