An inmate at the Mahara prison has died after a failed jail break attempt on Saturday, a police spokesman said.
On Saturday evening, seven inmates had been involved in a scuffle with two prison officers, spokesman Jaliya Senaratne explained.
He added that a prison officer had fired gunshots into the air to bring the situation under control.
One of the inmates, aged 38, who had attempted to escape over the prison wall using a rope, had fallen down, resulting in severe injuries.
He had died after being admitted to the Ragama hospital, the police spokesman noted.
The two prison officers who were involved in the brawl, have also been admitted to the Ragama hospital. Further investigations are underway.
