Woman, 42, dies after brief stay in Pinellas jail

LARGO — A 42-year-old woman died after having a medical episode in the Pinellas County jail, authorities said.

Margaret Tamang was booked into jail on Monday, then had a medical episode and was transferred to Largo Medical Center on Tuesday, according to a Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office news release. Her condition “rapidly declined” at the hospital, the agency said. Doctors pronounced her dead about 11 p.m. Wednesday.

She had multiple pre-existing health conditions, although the agency didn’t elaborate on what they were. While the jail has been dealing with a recent coronavirus outbreak among inmates, Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Sgt. Jessica Mackesy said Tamang’s death doesn’t appear to be related to the virus.

Jail records show Tamang was in custody on two failure-to-appear charges that stemmed from prior heroin possession arrests.