CHENNAI: The police have launched an investigation into the death of a foreign national who was lodged in Puzhal Central Prison in Chennai.

The deceased has been identified as Domingos Mendes Afonso (60), a native of Portugal. He was arrested in 2023 in connection with a drug trafficking case and was housed in the foreign prisoners' block within the convicts' section of the Puzhal prison complex. Suffering from a liver ailment, Afonso was admitted to Stanley Government Hospital last month. He had been undergoing intensive treatment there before passing away on Thursday (March 19). The Puzhal police have registered a case and are further investigating.