Cops say ascertaining real identity of Nepali who died in custody

The police are checking with the Immigration Department to ascertain the identity of a Nepali man known as "Dhan Bahadur" who died in a lock-up last month.

The man died at the Jinjang lock-up in Kuala Lumpur five days after he was remanded.

NGO Eliminating Deaths and Abuse in Custody (Edict) had then urged the police to shed light on the details surrounding the death.

However, in a surprising turn, the Nepalese embassy said that the man was not a Nepali named Dhan Bahadur.

The embassy said the actual owner of the identity is alive and well in Nepal, adding that Dhan Bahadur had previously worked in Malaysia until 2018 as a security guard, during which time his passport might have been photocopied without his knowledge.

In a statement today, Kuala Lumpur police chief Mazlan Lazim said that the police had sent the details of the deceased for further checks with the Immigration Department last month and are awaiting the result.

"The investigating officer had submitted the details of the deceased for checks with the Immigration Department on May 28 and we are awaiting the result," he said.

Mazlan said when the man was arrested on May 27, there was no personal identification document produced by him.

"He only orally admitted that his name is Dhan Bahadur.

"After being brought to the Sentul police headquarters, he had given a passport copy which states the name Dhan Bahadur with passport number 06658995 to the investigating officer.

"The picture shown on the copy was the same as his," Mazlan said.

The deceased's housemates had also identified him as Dhan Bahadur.

Mazlan added that the police will brief the result of the investigation to the Nepalese embassy on June 18. - Mkini