EAIC to probe death of detainee in Bera police lockup

The Enforcement Agency Integrity Commission is to investigate the reported death of a detainee in the lockup of the Bera police headquarters in Pahang on Jan 18.

A taskforce comprising a senior EAIC officer has been set up to conduct an immediate investigation into the death, the EAIC said in a statement today.

It quoted several news portal reports as saying the 49-year-old man was found unconscious and pronounced dead at 12.15am. The man was detained by police over a theft case and was being investigated under Section 379 of the Penal Code.

EAIC said it viewed seriously the death of detainees in lockups and stressed that the integrity and credibility of enforcement agencies should remain untainted and safeguarded from such incidents.

It urged enforcement agencies with lockups to give serious attention to the EAIC-recommended improvements on the management and handling of detainees.

-- BERNAMA