A prisoner killed at HMP Belmarsh has been named as convicted arsonist Sundeep Ghuman.

The 36-year-old was found with head injuries at the south east London high security prison on February 18.

He was taken to hospital in a critical condition, where he died the following evening.

Two 28-year-old men, also inmates at the prison, were arrested at the scene on suspicion of attempted murder and have been bailed pending further inquiries.

HMP Belmarsh Prison
HMP Belmarsh in London (Anthony Devlin/PA)

A post-mortem examination, which took place at Greenwich Mortuary on February 21, gave the cause of death as a head injury.

The Metropolitan Police said Ghuman’s next of kin have been notified.

Ghuman was jailed for five years and four months in 2011 for a series of arson attacks in the south east London borough of Bexley, the Crown Prosecution Service confirmed.

The Bexley Times reported at the time that Ghuman broke into a Kwik Fit store on May 7 2011 while armed with a blow torch and a propane gas canister, and set fire to a tyre stack and a fence.

Later that night, residents had to be evacuated from their homes after he damaged a pipe, causing a build-up of gas.

He was found guilty of two counts of arson and three counts of being reckless as to whether life would be endangered, the paper reported.

At the end of his prison sentence, Ghuman was to remain on licence for a further five years.

Speaking about his death, Detective Chief Inspector Richard Leonard said: “We are working to establish the circumstances surrounding this incident with the support of the prison and local officers.

“At this stage I am open-minded concerning motive, but expect this to become clear as the investigation progresses.”