A PRISONER due to be sentenced for his part in a gun smuggling operation has been found hanged in his cell.

Anthony Magee was found in Belmarsh Prison on February 3 at around 6am.

Magee, of Kentish Town, had pleaded guilty to possessing prohibited weaponry and ammunition without a licence.

He was due to be sentenced next week.

Staff tried to resuscitate Magee but he was pronounced dead within the hour.

The 43-year-old was arrested on May 16 last year after armed officers found him in a car containing 18 converted gas pistols, 18 silencers and 748 rounds of ammunition.

  • Last month, 22-year-old Thomas Joseph Carty was also found hanged in his cell at the Thamesmead prison.

Carty, of West Drayton, was due to stand trial for the murder of a 65-year-old woman.

Kam Fum Chung was killed at her home in Hillingdon, west London, on November 6 last year.

Carty was due to attend a hearing charged with murder, aggravated burglary and threats to kill.

He was also charged with possession of an imitation firearm.

Mrs Chung, who owned a Chinese restaurant, was stamped on and kicked to death. Her 15-year-old son discovered her body.

The Prisons and Probation Ombudsman are carrying out investigations into both prisoners deaths.