Karapet Demirdzhyan
Karapet Demirdzhyan, 66, was held at Salinas Valley State Prison in Soledad, California, when he died on January 29, 2026. The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation said he was found unresponsive in his cell during a morning security check and that ambulance staff pronounced him dead at 6:53 a.m. The department is investigating his death as a homicide with the prison's Investigative Services Unit and the Monterey County District Attorney's Office, and his cellmate has been placed in restricted housing.
Cause of death, as reported: Killed by another person in custody
Reported by: California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (the agency that held him). The only account of how this person died comes from the agency that held him.