Lawyer wants post-mortem to ascertain assault allegations in detainee's death
A school van driver who was placed in Sungai Buloh Prison for nine months pending a murder trial died at a hospital while being treated for a severe stomach problem yesterday, according to his family's lawyer M Manoharan.
When contacted by Malaysiakini today, Manoharan insisted a thorough post-mortem be conducted on 29-year-old Mohd Iqbal Abdullah...
A school van driver who was placed in Sungai Buloh Prison for nine months pending a murder trial died at a hospital while being treated for a severe stomach problem yesterday, according to his family's lawyer M Manoharan.
When contacted by Malaysiakini today, Manoharan insisted a thorough post-mortem be conducted on 29-year-old Mohd Iqbal Abdullah.
"I want a thorough post-mortem to ascertain two allegations of abuse and assault against him - first by the police officer upon his arrest in September 2020 and later by a warden two to three months ago," he said.
Iqbal, a father of two who lived in Selayang, Selangor was charged with murder together with 20 others, including two of his elder brothers, two weeks after his remand. He had complained about a stomach problem since then, according to Manoharan.
He said after being informed of Iqbal's death, the family received another call from an inmate at the Sungai Buloh Prison who saw Iqbal before he was sent to the hospital.
“The inmate said he saw Iqbal in a wheelchair at the prison's clinic yesterday morning. He said Iqbal was ushered out of the prison to Tanjung Karang Hospital for a rescheduled appointment with a specialist for a stomach problem.
“It was through the telephone conversation that the family found out that Iqbal claimed he was abused and assaulted in September 2020 and three weeks ago.
“Iqbal had complained of a stomach problem every time he was taken to court (where the family met him). The last time Iqbal’s wife saw him was in February. She said he lost a lot of weight, and he was weak and fragile," the lawyer said.
"The family believes that he was assaulted," he added.
Iqbal's brothers, aged 31 and 32, who were also detained under the Prevention of Crime Act 1959, are now at the Pokok Sena Prison.
A police report was made by Iqbal's wife Nursyamsiah Yakathali, 28, yesterday against the investigating officer, the prison and the hospital for allegedly neglecting medical attention to her husband.
In the police report sighted by Malaysiakini, she alleged that her husband, who suffered from haemorrhoids and was in serious health condition, was not immediately given medical treatment.
"He was treated in Sungai Buloh Hospital but then transferred to the Tanjung Karang Hospital. I was told by the doctor there that he would be further treated on June 20, which I think was too late and could cause his health condition to worsen," she said.
In a statement yesterday, Manoharan called for Prison Department director-general Ibrisam Abdul Rahman to resign immediately for the alleged inhumane treatment by the prison authorities since Iqbal was in their custody from Sept 28, 2020.
"I also call upon the immediate sacking of the officer from the Gombak District Police Headquarters for wrongful arrest, which according to the victim's wife was trumped up by the police for a crime he did not commit.
"I urge Chief Justice Tengku Maimun Tuan Mat to look into the pending murder cases which have been unnecessarily postponed on the request of the deputy public prosecutors on flimsy grounds," he said.
When contacted, an official from the Prison Department said the department is looking into the allegation.
Malaysiakini has also attempted to contact the police for comment.
