A 45-year-old Wichita man died at the Sedgwick County Adult Detention Facility on Wednesday, Oct. 21, two days after he was booked on felony drug charges.

It was the fifth time an inmate has died in custody involving the facility this year, according to the Sedgwick County Sheriff's Office.

Detention staff found the man unconscious and not breathing in his cell at approximately 12:54 p.m., the sheriff's office said. Staff and on-site medical personnel began life-saving efforts. The Wichita Fire Department and Sedgwick County EMS also responded. The inmate was pronounced dead.

The sheriff's office said the death appears to be related to a medical condition. An autopsy will determine the official cause and manner of death.

The man had been in custody since Monday, Oct. 19, on felony drug charges and a probation arrest-and-detain order. The sheriff’s office initially withheld his name pending notification of next of kin.

The Sedgwick County Sheriff's Office and the Kansas Bureau of Investigation (KBI) are conducting a full investigation.

Four deaths preceded this one

Four other people died while in the facility’s custody earlier in 2026.

On March 25, a 30-year-old Wichita man died after a medical emergency in his cell. An autopsy found a preliminary cause of pulmonary thromboembolism, a blocked lung artery, according to the sheriff's office. He had been in custody since Dec. 2, 2025, on burglary and other charges. The Wichita Eagle reported that six inmates died in custody at the jail in 2025.

On April 30, an 80-year-old Goddard man died in the facility's clinic, where he had been receiving hospice care for multiple chronic illnesses, the sheriff's office said. He had been hospitalized seven times during his incarceration, spending 51 days in the hospital before requesting hospice care.

On July 30, John Matthew Rockwell, 61, of Valley Center died at a local hospital while being treated for a pre-existing cardiac condition, according to Sheriff's Office spokesman Branden Stitt, as reported by the Salina Post. Rockwell had been in custody since July 17 on a probation violation. He was hospitalized July 27, and his condition worsened July 28. Doctors placed him on life support. His family later authorized its withdrawal.

On Aug. 19, a 42-year-old woman died after a suicide attempt on Aug. 13 at the facility, the sheriff's office said. She had previously been on suicide watch but was not on suicide watch at the time of her attempt, the Wichita Eagle reported. She was on a mental health watch requiring documented check-ins every half-hour. She had been in custody since June 26, serving a 30-month sentence after a probation revocation.

No public statement from the sheriff's office or Sedgwick County addressing the overall pattern of deaths has appeared in available records.

The official cause of death for the Oct. 21 case remains pending.

If you are having suicidal thoughts, call or text 988 to reach the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.