Cops confirm another death in custody

Johor police have confirmed another case of death in police custody after the matter was highlighted by the human rights group Eliminating Death and Abuse in Custody Together (Edict).

Johor police chief Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay (photo, above) told Malaysiakini that the deceased was a man arrested on July 9. He was found unconscious and pronounced dead on July 17.

“After the deceased was pronounced dead, police called the coroner, who is a Segamat magistrate, to the scene. Also at the scene was the forensics team.

“The coroner was satisfied that there was no sign of foul play or injury found on the deceased. Now we are waiting for the post-mortem report to determine his cause of death,” Ayob told Malaysiakini today when contacted.

The suspect was held at the Segamat district police headquarters at the time, pending investigation under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952 for drug trafficking.

Ayob added that the 46-year old suspect had a history of drug abuse.

He said this when asked about Edict’s allegation that there had been another case of death in police custody.

While providing few details, the group claimed that the death had taken place in Segamat and involved a middle-aged man.

It noted with dismay that neither the inspector-general of police nor the home minister had announced plans to end deaths in custody or to stem the decline of public confidence in the police.

It accused the police of routinely failing to meet its own directive to complete investigations on deaths in custody within one month and hold an inquest.

“We can prove through court records that that goal is routinely missed.

“Though the mantra ‘every life matters’ is often repeated in Malaysia, the inspector-general of police and the home minister remain silent in the face of the scourge of deaths in police lockups,” the group said in a statement today. - Mkini