VIRGINIA BEACH, VA – An inmate at the Virginia Beach Correctional Center died by suicide Wednesday evening.
While conducting a routine security check at 5:40 p.m. on June 18, 2025, a deputy sheriff found Michael Margulies, 49, unresponsive. The deputy immediately called medical staff and other deputies for assistance; CPR on the inmate was started at 5:42 p.m. The inmate was transported by ambulance to Sentara Princess Anne Hospital, where he was declared dead at 7:18 p.m.
Margulies was booked into the Virginia Beach Correctional Center on Nov. 1, 2024, on charges of felony abduction, felony strangulation, misdemeanor assault on a family member, misdemeanor contributing to the delinquency of a child, and misdemeanor violation of a protective order. Margulies was serving a 1-year, six-month sentence with a pending release date of July 21, 2025.
As with all in-custody deaths, the incident is being investigated by the Virginia Beach Police Department and the Virginia Beach Sheriff’s Office Professional Standards Office. The incident has also been reported to the Virginia Department of Corrections, which reviews all in-custody deaths and has the authority to investigate.
The Chief Medical Examiner’s Office in Norfolk will determine the official cause and manner of death.
Sheriff Rocky Holcomb and the VBSO send their sincere condolences to Margulies’s friends and family. The Virginia Beach Sheriff’s Office takes suicide prevention seriously and screens all inmates for mental illness, history of depression and suicidal tendencies.
Any questions or requests for additional information from the news media may be directed to Toni Guagenti, Public Information Officer: pio@vbso.net or 757-385-8446.