SOLEDAD – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) officials are investigating the Jan. 29, 2026, death of an incarcerated person at Salinas Valley State Prison (SVSP) as a homicide.
On Jan. 29, 2026, at approximately 6:15 a.m., staff observed incarcerated person Karapet Demirdzhyan unresponsive in his cell during a security check in a housing unit.
Staff immediately responded, initiating life-saving measures on Demirdzhyan and activating 911. Outside medical ambulance staff pronounced Demirdzhyan deceased at 6:53 a.m.
Demirdzhyan’s cellmate, incarcerated person Mario A. Martinez, has been placed in restricted housing pending an investigation by the SVSP Investigative Services Unit and the Monterey County District Attorney’s Office. The Office of the Inspector General has been notified.
Demirdzhyan, 66, was received from Los Angeles County on April 16, 1996. He was sentenced to life with the possibility of parole for first-degree murder with an enhancement for the use of a firearm. While incarcerated, he was also sentenced to four years by Riverside County on Sept. 25, 2008, for possession of a controlled substance in a jail or prison as a second striker, to be served concurrent to the first sentence.
Martinez, 35, was received from Los Angeles County on Dec. 22, 2015. He was sentenced to life with the possibility of parole for second-degree murder per PC 2933.2 with an enhancement for the personal use of a dangerous or deadly weapon. While incarcerated, he was also sentenced to 17 years by Kern County on Sept. 25, 2018, for assault by a prisoner with a deadly weapon or force likely to produce great bodily injury as a second striker with an enhancement for prior felony conviction of a serious offense under PC667(a)(1)[01] to be served concurrent to the first sentence.
SVSP opened in May 1996 in Monterey County. The institution houses approximately 2,400 minimum- and maximum-custody incarcerated individuals and employs approximately 1,500 staff.
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