A Riker’s Island inmate died Sunday morning, the second fatality at the city jail in less than a week, officials said.
Accused drug-ring leader John Price, 49, was being held at the Eric M. Taylor Center at Riker’s when he complained to guards that he needed medical attention around 5:40 p.m. Saturday, corrections officials said.
Price was moved off the island for treatment at Elmhurst Hospital. He died hours later at the hospital, according to authorities.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani said an investigation into his death is under way.
“Transparency is essential and the Department of Correction and oversight partners have begun an investigation into the circumstances of his death,” Hizzoner said in a statement.
City Department of Corrections Commissioner Stanley Richards added, “The safety, support and well-being of every person entrusted to us are of the highest importance.”
Price was arrested in 2024 for charges related to drug dealing, court records show.
He had been accused of leading a crew of drug dealers in Jamaica, Queens, who were peddling coke, heroin and fentanyl before being busted with a number of other associates as a part of a long-term investigation by Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz.
Price was due to appear back in court April 14.
He was the second person to die in corrections custody in less than a week.
Barry Cozart, 39, was discovered in need of medical aid by corrections officers inside the George R. Vierno Center on Riker’s around 11:33 a.m. Wednesday, corrections officials said.
Staff at the facility attempted to save the man using CPR, but he was soon pronounced dead, according to authorities.
Cozart had been arrested on burglary and larceny charges and was awaiting trial while on Riker’s, court records show. He was due back in court May 12.
The Department of Corrections and other oversight agencies are also investigating the circumstances around Cozart’s death, corrections officials said.