A man who was allegedly beaten by the police while in detention has succumbed to his injuries after spending over a month at Selayang Hospital’s Intensive Care Unit.
His sister, A Thangamalar, 41, said the hospital confirmed her 40-year-old sibling Ganapathy’s passing after being admitted to the hospital on March 8.
“My brother died from his beating at 10.55pm (on a Sunday).
“The cause of death is not yet known. The autopsy will be conducted (today),” she told Malaysiakini yesterday.
Previously, the deceased’s mother, S Thanaletchumy, 60, lodged a report at the Gombak District police headquarters on March 11, claiming that her son was beaten while in police custody.
She said Ganapathy was arrested on Feb 24 to facilitate investigations into another of her children who is wanted by the police.
He was said to be healthy at the time of his arrest despite a history of diabetes and heart problems.
However, Ganapathy's sister claimed she was not allowed to see her brother when she brought his medicine to the police station.
On March 8, the deceased’s family received a call from a police sergeant informing that Ganapathy had been released but was admitted to Selayang Hospital’s ICU.
Thanaletchumy said her son told her that the police had beaten him with a rubber hose. While at the hospital, Ganapathy was confirmed to have kidney problems and his legs had to be amputated.
His family claimed Ganapathy’s health deteriorated because of his stint in police custody, resulting in his leg being swollen and bruised as though he had been beaten.
Ganapathy had worked as a trader selling cow’s milk and has two children aged five and seven years old.
When contacted, Gombak OCPD Arifai Tarawe said the police are still waiting for the autopsy report.
“A comprehensive investigation has been conducted. So far, we are waiting for the autopsy report,” he told Malaysiakini.
For the record, Arifai had told Malaysiakini on March 12 that he ordered a detailed investigation to be conducted on the case.
Meanwhile, the deceased’s family lawyer K Ganesh said there are still many unanswered questions about the case and urged the district police chief to resign.
“The family members of Ganapathy are shattered. They cannot understand what was his crime that he had to be remanded for two weeks.
“How come the OCPD did not know what was happening at his station? There has been a severe dereliction of duty. The case now has to be classified as murder or manslaughter and reinvestigated,” he said.
Ganesh also questioned why no one had been arrested over Ganapathy’s beatings to this day.
“When he (Ganapathy) was conscious, he did inform his family that he was beaten severely with a hose. This I gathered was told to the police,” he added. - Mkini
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