Two Department of Correction prisoners died Monday due to complications from COVID-19, the department confirmed.
These mark the fourth and fifth deaths of prisoners in the state system.
The first was a 60-year-old man who was receiving treatment at UConn Health Center after testing positive for the virus, officials said. He was taken to the hospital on April 20 and died Monday.
Officials said he was serving a 14-year sentence for first-degree burglary. He was not publicly identified due to privacy laws.
The second was a 51-year-old man who was receiving treatment at the Northern Correctional Institution's Medical Isolation Unit in Somers since April 24. Northern Correctional has been used as an isolation center for COVID-19 positive inmates across the state's system. Officials said on Sunday he was taken to the hospital for further treatment, where he died Monday.
That man was serving a 42-year, six-month sentence for murder and had been in the Department of Correction system since June 1992. He was not publicly identified due to privacy laws.
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According to the Department of Correction website, as of Monday 450 inmates have tested positive for COVID-19, and 314 have recovered; more than 300 staffers have contracted the virus, and 154 have been cleared to return to work.
