Feb. 25 (UPI) -- A man who killed five people during a month-long murder spree in 2018 has been suspected of killing his child rapist cellmate at a California prison, officials said.
Juan Villanueva, 53, was found unresponsive in his cell at 8:49 a.m. Friday during a wellness check conducted by correctional officers at North Kern State Prison, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation said in a news release.
"The officer observed Villanueva unresponsive in the cell and immediately summoned for medical response," officials said in the release.
"Responding staff initiated lifesaving measures, summoned an ambulance and transported Villanueva to the prison's triage and treatment area.
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"However, Villanueva could not be saved and was declared dead at 9:03 a.m., prison officials said.
Prison officials restricted movement around the cell to aid the investigation, which is being conducted by the prison's investigative services unit with the Kern County District Attorney's Office and the Kern County Coroner.
Villanueva was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole for the aggravated sexual assault of a child under the age of 14 in October 2022. He was taken into the custody of the prison on Feb. 2.
Investigators appear to suspect that Villanueva's new cellmate, Ramon Escobar, may have been behind the attack and identified him in the news release.
Escobar, 51, was sentenced to serve life in prison without the possibility of parole after he pleaded guilty of two counts of first-degree murder in 2018.
Escobar bludgeoned five people to death, including his aunt and uncle, before fleeing to California, KTLA reported. He also injured several others during the violent spree, many of them homeless, in Los Angeles and Santa Monica.
