Police integrity commission calls for revised procedures after clearing police of suspect’s death
24 Feb 2011, 7:50 PM
Neil Merrett
The Police Integrity Commission (PIC) has ruled that the Maldives Police Service was not culpable for the death of 20 year old Abdulla Basith Zubair whilst in their custody, although it has called for revised safety procedures when holding suspects.
Head of the PIC Shahindha Ismail told Minivan News that a five member independent panel ruled after reviewing evidence, which included medical reports, that police were not accountable for Zubair’s death after he was taken into custody last month for alleged drug offences. The five members of the PIC panel that rule on cases are initially nominated by the president before being put before the Majlis for approval and do not contain any serving police members, according to Ismail.
Zubair was reportedly found dead on the morning of January 14 after he was taken into custody where police said he had tested positive for the presence of illegal drugs in his system.
His death was confirmed after he later was taken to hospital after being discovered by officers who the police service had claimed thought he had been asleep.
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