VICTORIA – The Correctional Service of Canada says an inmate serving a sentence for second-degree murder has died at the Victoria-area William Head Institution.

A statement Friday says inmate Richard Paul Preston died on Saturday while in custody at the minimum-security federal institution.

The Correctional Service statement does not provide details on the cause of death, but says Preston’s next of kin have been notified as have the police and coroner.

The statement says Preston was serving a sentence for second-degree murder, which commenced on April 28, 1994.

The Correctional Service statement says it will review the circumstances surrounding Preston’s death.

It says William Head is a minimum-security institution that consists of about 35 hectares of federal land located at the southern tip of Vancouver Island about 30 kilometres southwest of Victoria.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 8, 2023.

Note to readers: This is a corrected story. A previous version said William Head Institution is northwest of Victoria. In fact, it is southwest.