NGO questions misidentification of Nepali who died in custody

The NGO Eliminating Deaths and Abuse in Custody (Edict) demanded an explanation from the police and Immigration Department over how the authorities misidentified a Nepali man who died in the Jinjang lockup on May 31.

KL police previously said that 37-year-old 'Dhan Bahdur' was found dead in his cell five days after he was remanded.

The Nepali embassy later stated that the real Dhan Bhadur had left Malaysia in 2018, and was alive in Nepal.

Yesterday, the police then said they were checking with the Immigration Department to ascertain the identity of the man who died.

In a statement today, Edict questioned why the authorities had failed to correctly identify the victim.

“Why didn’t they contact the Nepal embassy for verification the moment they arrested ‘Dhan’? Why have they not circulated his photo to ask for help in identification?” the NGO asked. 

Edict further urged the police to scrutinise if any members of the police played any part in the man’s death, and to treat every death-in-custody victim as avoidable.

The NGO also questioned why Immigration had not been able to identify the Nepali since last month.

“It is shocking that with the Covid-19 concern over foreigners (and) with (the advantages of) information technology, the Immigration department is so unresponsive,” it said.

Edict urged the Nepali embassy to lodge a police report against the misidentification.

“Without police a report, we cannot be sure the police will launch a formal investigation of the misidentification and treat it with the seriousness it deserves,” it added.

KL police chief Mazlan Lazim previously ruled out foul play in the Nepali’s death even though autopsy and laboratory results were pending. The death had been classified as a 'sudden death'.

Mazlan said the deceased was arrested on May 27 for failing to produce identification documents. - Mkini