Prisoner found dead in cell after drinking hand sanitiser in mistaken belief it had alcohol
Darragh Mc Donagh
A 38-year-old inmate was found dead in his cell at Mountjoy Prison after reportedly drinking hand sanitiser in the mistaken belief that it contained alcohol, a newly published investigation report has revealed.
An investigation by the Office of the Inspector of Prisons (OIP) revealed that inmates frequently removed hand sanitiser from dispenser units at the prison during the Covid-19 pandemic before boiling it to “cook off the bad stuff”.
They failed to realise, however, that alcohol-based sanitiser had been banned from Irish jails since 2014, when three prisoners in Limerick were rushed to hospital after drinking a concoction of handwash and prescription drugs.
OIP investigators were told by inmates at Mountjoy Prison that the 38-year-old had been drinking hand sanitiser with several others for a number of days prior to his death on January 3rd, 2022.
Inmates expressed the belief that boiling the sanitiser in a kettle “cooked off the bad stuff” and made it easier to drink. They likened the effects of drinking a mug of the boiled substance to drinking a bottle of vodka.
However, the OIP obtained details of the hand sanitiser used in the prison and confirmed that it did not contain any alcohol.
The report noted that the deceased prisoner had been placed on a less restrictive regime in the Progression Unit at Mountjoy and had a remission date of May 16th 2024, at the time of his death.
A review of CCTV by OIP investigators revealed that the prisoner, identified in the report only as Mr A, did not leave his cell for breakfast on January 2nd, 2022. However, six different inmates entered his cell on 12 occasions that afternoon.
One inmate reported finding him sitting on a chair in his cell “with his head down towards his knees” and believed him to be “really drunk”. Two prisoners lifted him into bed and placed him on his side around 3pm.
One of the prisoners was worried and felt that they should “call the medic”, according to the report, but the other felt that Mr A would “sleep it off” and was concerned that they would get him in trouble if prison officers got involved.
They told the OIP that Mr A was one of a group of prisoners who had been drinking hand sanitiser for a number of days prior to the incident, and expressed the view that he must have “drank a bad batch or something”.
Other prisoners checked on Mr A a number of times that evening and observed that he was “snoring heavily”. A prison officer looked into the cell around 6:45 pm and saw no cause for concern.
The cell was checked a total of seven times between 6:51 pm and 7:36 am the following morning.
When the cell was unlocked for breakfast on January 3rd 2022, the prisoner did not respond, and a prison officer could not find a pulse.
He issued a ‘Code Red’ and a nurse attended the scene, but found that Mr A was cold to the touch and his lips were blue.
No signs of life were detected, and a doctor pronounced the man dead at 9:27 am.
In its report, the OIP called for “tighter procedures” to reduce the risk of inmates removing cleaning products that may contain ethanol.
It also recommended that the Irish Prison Service (IPS) ensure continuity of treatment for inmates engaging with addiction treatment services when transferring between institutions.
It noted that Mr A had been placed on a waiting list upon arrival at Mountjoy, but had not been reached by the addiction service prior to his death.
