Maryland State Police have launched an investigation following a reported killing at North Branch Correctional Institution in Allegany County. The incident is the state’s first prison homicide of 2026.

According to a statement from the state police department, Larry Horton, 51, was found unresponsive in his cell Saturday night and declared dead by emergency medical services personnel at the prison. Officials from the state Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services contacted the state police department’s homicide unit at 11:30 p.m.

Police have identified another man who, like Horton, was incarcerated at North Branch as a suspect in the killing. Law enforcement officials have not revealed his identity, citing the pending charges against him.

North Branch, a “hypermax” prison in Cumberland, was the site of five of the 13 reported homicides in Maryland prisons last year. Homicides rose 44% at Maryland state prisons last year despite a shrinking incarcerated population.

The police statement did not include details of the circumstances of Horton’s death. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner will conduct an autopsy to determine a cause.