Convicted murderer in Oregon prison dies unexpectedly

A convicted murderer who was an inmate at a Umatilla prison died Saturday after being transferred to a hospital.

Staff at Two Rivers Correctional Institution found Joel Abbott, 60, unresponsive in his cell Saturday about 10:30 a.m., according to a news release.

Abbott was pronounced dead at a Portland-area hospital hours later. Prison officials did not release a cause of death.

The death will be investigated by Oregon State Police, something that happens in all inmate deaths at the facility.

Abbott was convicted in 1993 of first-degree murder for killing his ex-girlfriend, Carolann Payne, whose body hasn’t been found.

Abbott was serving a life sentence.

This story was originally published February 27, 2016 at 7:06 PM with the headline "Convicted murderer in Oregon prison dies unexpectedly."