A Brazilian actor has died after accidentally hanging himself during a Passion play last month.

Tiago Klimeck, 27, was playing the role of Judas in a local theatre company's production of The Passion of the Christ in Itararé, a city just west of São Paulo. Enacting the disciple's suicide following his betrayal of Jesus, as portrayed in the gospel of Matthew, the actor experienced complications and was left hanging for four minutes before other cast members realised anything was wrong. By the time he was taken down, Klimeck was unconscious.

He died last Sunday, having been in a medically induced coma since the performance on Good Friday (6 April). On his arrival at the Santa Casa de Misericórdia hospital in the nearby city of Itapeva, scans diagnosed cerebral hypoxia, extensive brain damage caused by prolonged lack of oxygen.

Police are investigating equipment used in the performance, including a rope in which a knot may have been improperly tied, at the Criminal Institute of Sorocaba. According to CNN affiliate TV Record, Klimeck was due to wear the harness borrowed from the local fire station for the last three years. He was reportedly left unsupervised because he knew how to use the equipment.

The Passion of the Christ is performed in towns and cities across Brazil each year. Local productions can involve up to 500 actors and are watched by thousands of visitors.

• This article was amended on 25 April 2012 to correct the spelling of São Paulo, from São Paolo.