One San Diego County inmate suspected of killing another in Northern California prison

An inmate from San Diego County serving a life sentence on a murder conviction is now suspected of killing a fellow inmate, also convicted of crimes in San Diego County, inside their shared cell at a Northern California prison, state officials said.

Daniel Haro

(Courtesy of California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation)

Daniel Haro, 37, is suspected of killing 27-year-old Martin Aguilar, who was found dead around 9:20 a.m. Thursday inside their cell at Pelican Bay State Prison near the Oregon border, according to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

State prison officials did not say by what means Haro allegedly killed Aguilar. The prison’s investigative services unit is probing the homicide, and prison officials have notified the state’s Office of the Inspector General, which oversees California’s corrections department.

Aguilar was sentenced to prison in April 2015 for charges that included assault with a deadly weapon with a street gang enhancement, possession of drugs for sale and assaulting a police officer or firefighter. He was convicted of more crimes while incarcerated, including assault charges in Imperial County and Del Norte County, and sentenced to additional prison time.

Haro was convicted of first-degree murder and attempted murder and sentenced in April 2014 to life in prison with the possibility of parole.

According to court documents stemming from an appeal of his conviction, a jury found Haro guilty of strangling a man to death with a piece of fabric inside a drug “flophouse.” Shortly before the murder, the victim had interrupted Haro while he was strangling an ex-lover with the piece of fabric.