FOLSOM – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) officials are investigating the Feb. 23, 2026, death of an incarcerated person at California State Prison, Sacramento (CSP-SAC) as a homicide.
At approximately 9:15 p.m., staff observed incarcerated person John Cisneros unresponsive in his cell.
Staff immediately responded, initiating life-saving measures and activating 911. Outside medical ambulance staff pronounced Cisneros deceased at 9:59 p.m.
Cisnero’s cellmate, Irvin Sanchez, was detained and removed from the cell. He has been placed in restricted housing pending an investigation by SAC Investigative Services Unit and the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office. The Office of the Inspector General has been notified.
Cisneros, 49, was most recently received from Los Angeles County on July 6, 2015, sentenced to five years for second-degree robbery. While incarcerated, he was sentenced by Los Angeles County on Oct. 16, 2017, to 28 years for penetration, oral copulation and attempted rape with force/violence/fear of immediate bodily injury.
Sanchez, 34, was received from Los Angeles County on Feb. 27, 2013. He was sentenced to 18 years for attempted second-degree murder with enhancements of street gang act and use of a firearm, and one year, four months for concealing a firearm in a vehicle, to be served concurrently. SAC opened in 1986 and houses more than 2,200 medium-, maximum- and high-security incarcerated persons. SAC offers academic classes and vocational programs and employs approximately 1,500 people.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: OPEC@CDCR.ca.gov