A Birmingham prisoner has died after being stabbed in the chest by a fellow inmate at a privately-run jail.

The dead man, 44-year-old Wayne Martin Reid, received a chest wound in the incident at Ryehill Prison near Rugby and was pronounced dead at 5pm yesterday, a spokesman for the prison said.

Mr Reid, who was serving seven years for robbery, was from the Balsall Heath area.

John Bates, a spokesman for prison operators GSL, said: "Mr Reid was assaulted in a living unit. He sustained a stab injury to the chest. A police investigation is underway."

The spokesman said he was unable to confirm what type of weapon had been used.