AN ASYLUM seeker has been found dead at the Verne on Portland.

The man was discovered this morning at the Immigration Removal Centre.

It is understood the 30-year-old detainee from Uganda had been refused asylum in the UK and was awaiting deportation.

It is understood that he took his own life and was discovered in his cell.

A spokesman for the Home Office said: "We can confirm that a 30-year-old man was found dead at the Verne Immigration Removal Centre this morning.

“Our thoughts are with the family at this very sad time.

"As is the case with any death in detention, the police have been informed and a full independent investigation will be conducted by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman."

A source told the Echo that detainees on the wing where the man died have been left 'shaken'.

They added: "It's thought the man died in the night, a suspected suicide.

"It is very sad. The man was in his 30s and a Ugandan international and he has children and a mother in this country."

The Verne officially became an IRC in September last year, six months after it began taking detainees.

Since then, there have been numerous reports about the conditions inside the facility.

In March, one detainee, who had spent time in HMP Wandsworth- dubbed the UK's 'worst jail'- said the Verne is worse.

He said some of those held are suicidal and there is an increasing air of ‘frustration.’ Many do not know how long they will be detained before removal from the country.

Many people held in detention centres are asylum seekers whose claims have been refused or are being processed.

Others are non-UK citizens or lawful refugees who have completed prison sentences.