Authorities identify Allegheny County Jail inmate who died this week
The Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office identified the jail inmate who died at a local hospital Wednesday as Beaver County resident Zachary J. Sahm.
Sahm, 27, of Glasgow, was taken to Allegheny County Jail on Saturday on a bench warrant and detainer charge from outside Allegheny County, Warden Orlando Harper said.
Sahm tested positive for fentanyl, methamphetamine and amphetamines as he was being processed into the jail and was placed in detox protocols, the warden said.
Sahm was found “in medical distress” around 7:30 a.m. Wednesday and taken to a hospital, where he died at 9:17 am, Harper said.
He is the third county jail inmate to die in custody this year, county spokesperson Amie Downs said earlier this week. A total of 16 inmates have died at the jail since 2020.
The medical examiner’s office has not yet determined a cause or manner of death. Allegheny County Police are investigating the death.
Justin Vellucci is a TribLive reporter covering crime and public safety in Pittsburgh and Allegheny County. A longtime freelance journalist and former reporter for the Asbury Park (N.J.) Press, he worked as a general assignment reporter at the Trib from 2006 to 2009 and returned in 2022. He can be reached at jvellucci@triblive.com.
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