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© Anne-Christine Poujoulat/AFP/Getty Images
An American detained in Egypt for more than a month has been found dead in his prison cell after allegedly committing suicide. His death comes one day after his detention for violating a curfew was extended.

Egyptian security officials said on Sunday that the body of American James Henry, who told authorities he was a "retired officer," was found at noon at Ismailiya Awal police station.

Henry's death has come one day after his detention period was extended. The man was in custody for violating the curfew imposed by Egypt's military-backed government, state media reported Sunday.

A report from the prosecutor's office said Henry had hanged himself with a belt.

The US Embassy in Cairo confirmed "that a US citizen prisoner in Ismailiya died from an apparent suicide." Officials told the AFP news agency that an embassy delegation had visited Henry in his cell last week.

The Egyptian Interior Ministry announced that Henry was arrested in late August in Sheikh Zuwayid, in the Sinai Peninsula, for violating the curfew imposed in the wake of deadly political unrest across Egypt.

When he was stopped, Henry apparently told authorities he was on his way to the neighboring Gaza Strip.

He was found in the possession of a "computer and maps of important installations."

Henry is the second known foreigner to die in an Egyptian prison since a popular military coup overthrew President Mohammed Morsi on July 3. In September, a French citizen was beaten to death by cellmates in a Cairo jail.