A West Valley inmate died on Tuesday as a result of the second recent fatal gang-related attack in an Arizona prison, authorities said.
Jacob Major, 43, died at a Goodyear hospital after being attacked at Buckeye’s Arizona State Prison Complex (ASPC)-Lewis, according to the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation, and Reentry (ADCRR).
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Major has been in ADCRR custody since 2013. He was serving a sentence for vehicle theft, burglary, trafficking of stolen property, weapons misconduct, and forgery.
Major’s death came five days after Leron Indian died in a hospital following an attack at ASPC-Yuma. One of Indian’s attackers was hospitalized with unidentified injuries that are not life-threatening.
Indian, 50, has been in ADCRR custody since 2024, following a burglary conviction.
In all cases, multiple gang members attacked the victims following an argument. The investigations are underway, although ADCRR claims the occurrences are unrelated.
In response to the fatal attacks, the state prison department issued the following statements:
Any act of violence in Arizona’s prisons is unacceptable and cause for concern. However, ADCRR is confident that these targeted, gang-related incidents do not represent a threat to the wider inmate population or ADCRR staff, nor are they reflective of the broader safety conditions inside Arizona’s prisons. ADCRR continues to prioritize the safety and well-being of its staff with onsite employee support resources available 24/7 at every prison complex.
Specialized ADCRR staff, including the Department’s Security Threat Group (STG) and Intelligence Units work around-the-clock in partnership with other law enforcement agencies to investigate and deter gang activity inside Arizona’s prisons and related gang activity in Arizona’s communities at large.
While it is impossible to prevent every instance of violence, ADCRR and its law enforcement partners want to assure the public that we are dedicating every available resource, tactic and tool to investigate these recent gang-related deaths, ensure strong accountability of those involved, and to prevent further gang-related violence in Arizona’s prison system.
In April, an Arizona Senate committee opened a probe into ADCRR after a violent Tucson prisoner allegedly killed three other inmates.
