PETALING JAYA: A 39-year-old man arrested on Monday for drug possession and who died less than two hours after being detained is the eighth person to die in police custody this year.
Federal police integrity and standard compliance department (JIPS) director Commissioner Datuk Azri Ahmad today said the wanted man was held by the Gombak narcotics crimes investigations department (NCID) for drug possession and drug consumption under Section 12(2) and Section 15(1a) of the Dangerous Drugs Act respectively.
He said the suspect was arrested at 4.45pm and about 45 minutes later while at the Gombak district police headquarters, he complained of breathlessness.
Azri said police contacted the Selayang Hospital and the man was taken away for medical treatment.
However, he said at about 6.30pm while being treated at the hospital, the suspect passed away.
Azri said the cause of the suspect’s death is yet to be known.
He said the criminal investigations and death in custody (CIDC) unit of JIPS will conduct a probe into the case.
The suspect’s death brings the total number of deaths in police custody nationwide this year to eight.
Last week, Azri was quoted as saying that in the seven cases earlier, four inmates had died in police lock-ups while three others died in a hospital or on the way to a hospital.
He said only one death is suspected to involve foul play.
“Police have proposed that a clinic be set-up at police lock-ups to monitor the health of inmates instead of the current practice of referring them to the nearest hospital when a health emergency emerges,” Azri said.
It was reported that since 2015 and last year, 70 people have died in police custody nationwide.
