2 IE Men Accused Of Killing Inmate During CA Prison Yard Attack: Officials

SOLEDAD, CA — Two men from the Inland Empire were accused of killing a 43-year-old inmate on a prison yard at Salinas Valley State Prison, officials said.

On Monday, around 12:50 p.m., prison staff saw two inmates, identified as Dillon King, 28, and Justin Learmont, 44, approach 43-year-old Michael Loftin, another inmate, in a recreation yard and begin striking him with an improvised weapon, according to the California Department of Corrections.

Staff immediately intervened in the alleged attack and put King and Learmont in handcuffs. An improvised weapon was also recovered at the scene, officials said.

Staff alerted 911 and attempted life-saving measures, however a doctor at the prison pronounced Loftin dead at 1:19 p.m, officials said.

King and Learmont were placed in the restricted housing unit pending further investigation by the prison's investigators the Monterey County District Attorney's Office. The Office of the Inspector General was also notified.

Loftin was transferred to the prison from Del Norte County on Nov. 24, 2020. He was sentenced to life with the possibility of parole for first-degree murder with an enhancement for intentional discharge of a firearm causing great bodily injury or death, officials said in a news release.

King transferred from Riverside County on June 21, 2021. He was sentenced to seven years for second degree robbery as a second striker with an enhancement for personal use of a dangerous or deadly weapon, eight months for attempted first-degree burglary, and three years for receiving stolen property. He was also sentenced by Riverside County on March 11, 2024, to two years for assault with force likely to cause great bodily injury as a second striker, according to the California Department of Corrections.

Learmont was transferred from San Bernardino County on March 26, 2010. He was sentenced to life with the possibility of parole for attempted second-degree murder with an enhancement for intentional discharge of a firearm causing great bodily injury or death, and assault with a firearm. On March 9, 2016, Monterey County sentenced him to 17 years for assault by an incarcerated person with a deadly weapon or force likely to cause great bodily injury as a second striker, an in-prison offense, with an enhancement for a prior felony conviction of a serious offence.

No additional information about the attack was immediately available.