OTTUMWA —
An inmate in the Wapello County Jail was discovered dead in his jail cell Monday morning from an apparent hanging.
The Wapello County Sheriff’s Department reported that John Joseph Connell, 18, of Sioux City, was found unresponsive in his cell during rounds by law enforcement officials, who immediately called paramedics.
Connell was being held on three counts of sexual abuse in the second degree and possessing contraband inside a correctional facility.
Earlier this year, Connell and his father, Michael Connell, 46, were on the run, accused of multiple sex offenses.
The two were were apprehended in Texas in July, and the younger Connell was sent back to Wapello County, where had been incarcerated in the Wapello County Jail since Sept. 8.
Michael Connell remains incarcerated in El Paso, Texas.
John Connell’s body has been sent to the state medical examiner’s office for an autopsy to determine the official cause of death.
CNHI/Southeast Iowa
Ottumwa inmate found dead in cell
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