CLEVELAND—
Ariel Castro, sentenced to life in prison for the kidnapping, rape and beatings of three Cleveland women he held captive for years in his house, was found hanged in his prison cell Tuesday night, a state corrections official said.
The former school bus driver, who was under protective custody and isolated from other inmates at the Correctional Reception Center in Orient, Ohio, was found dead at about 9:20 p.m. when prison staff were making their rounds, Rehabilitation and Correction Department spokeswoman JoEllen Smith said.
After prison medical personnel tried to resuscitate him, Castro, 53, was transferred to an area hospital and pronounced dead about 90 minutes later, she said.