PETALING JAYA: A 39-year-old man, who was arrested on Monday for drug possession and died less than two hours after being detained, was the eighth person to die in police custody this year.
Federal police integrity and standard compliance department director Comm Datuk Azri Ahmad yesterday said the man was held by the Gombak narcotics crimes investigations department for drug possession and consumption under Section 12(2) and Section 15(1a) of the Dangerous Drugs Act respectively.
He said the deceased was arrested at 4.45pm and taken to the Gombak district police headquarters but about 45 minutes later, 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. The cause of death has not been ascertained.
He said the criminal investigations and death in custody (CIDC) unit of the department will conduct a probe into the case.
In a similar case on Feb 3 involving a 35-year-old man held for drug possession two days earlier, the detainee was found dead in his cell at the Pandamaran police lock-up in Klang.
In another case on Jan 13, two policemen and two detainees were arrested over the death of a 63-year-old man who was being held at the Taiping district police headquarters lock-up. The deceased was held earlier over a vehicle theft case.
Last week, Azri was quoted as saying that in the seven cases earlier, four detainees had died in police lock-ups while three others died in a hospital or on the way to a hospital, adding that only one death is suspected to involve foul play.
“Police have proposed that a clinic be set up at lock-ups to monitor the health of detainees instead of the current practice of referring them to the nearest hospital when a health emergency emerges,” Azri said.
With the frequent ocurrence of custodial deaths, the department formed the CIDC to undertake investigations of such cases.
The CIDC, which is led by a superintendant, comprises 12 police officers and a civilian staff.
It was reported that between 2015 and last year, 70 people have died in police custody nationwide.
It was reported that between 2015 and last year, 70 people have died in police custody.
