KUALA LUMPUR – The death of a detainee while in police custody yesterday, after he had undergone treatment for three days at the Kota Tinggi Hospital in Johor, has been attributed to decrease in lung and kidney functions.
In a statement this evening, Bukit Aman’s Standards Compliance Department director Datuk Azri Ahmad said the reduced function of the organs was brought about by Covid-19.
“The cause of death is due to the Covid-19 infection, which had decreased the kidney and lung functions of the detainee.
“The Crime Investigation Unit on Deaths in Custody as well as the Integrity and Standards Compliance Department will continue the investigation from various angles before submitting the results of the probe to the coroner,” he said.
The passing of the 43-year-old Malay man marks the ninth person to die in detention this year.
Azri, in an earlier statement, said the man was sent to Kota Tinggi Hospital on Wednesday to be treated for fever and vomiting.
A test confirmed that he was positive for the virus and was put in the Covid-19 ward for treatment.
He said the detainee was confirmed dead at 4.15am yesterday.
He added that the man had been arrested on January 21 at the Kota Tinggi district police headquarters under Section 15(1) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952.
The court had given a four-day remand order on January 25 and bail was offered. However, the man did not provide a guarantor and he was detained in jail.
Case mention was set on February 1 and hearing on February 28.
Azri said the man was temporarily placed in the police lock-up following a Covid-19 outbreak in jail. – The Vibes, February 19, 2022
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