Prison guards found the inmate’s body on Sunday evening at around 9:15pm, the prison service said in a short statement issued on 27 April.

An autopsy has been carried out, but authorities have not yet released the results, nor the cause of death.

Separately, Luxembourg’s ombudsman and prison officials have started inquiries.

The prisoner’s identity was not released, but the prison service said his family had been informed.

The penitentiary, in Schrassig, was designed to hold 597 inmates in both pre-trial detention and those convicted and serving sentences.