A spokeswoman for the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction said in an emailed statement that Castro was found hanging in his cell at 9:20 p.m. Tuesday. Medical staff tried to resuscitate him, and he was pronounced dead at a hospital a bit before 11 p.m.
He had been kept alone in his cell, with prison guards checking in on him every 30 minutes.
Castro, a school bus driver, kidnapped Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight and held them under lock and key in his house until their escape in May this year.
He pleaded guilty to 937 counts, and had been sentenced to life in prison without parole plus 1,000 years. Last month the county demolished his home.
