A 39-YEAR-OLD man, who was detained for investigations under the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, has died, becoming the eighth custodial death since the beginning of this year.

The man was arrested yesterday at 4.45pm and taken to Gombak police headquarters, Bukit Aman integrity and standards compliance department director Azri Ahmad said.

He added that at 5.30pm the man began complaining of breathing difficulties.

“He was taken to Selayang Hospital for treatment and died at 6.30pm while receiving treatment,” he said in a statement.

Azri said the cause of death has yet to be determined.

On February 9, police said there had been seven custodial deaths this year, with only one case involving criminal elements.

Of the seven deaths, four occurred in lock-ups, two at hospitals and one en route to a hospital.

Police split the deaths of detainees into two categories: death in lock-up and death in custody.

People who died while being questioned by the authorities or on remand are classified as deaths in custody; those who died in their cells are categorised as deaths in lock-up.

The seventh death this year, earlier this month, was of a 35-year-old man found at Pandamaran police station in Klang.

The suspect was on a three-day remand to be investigated under section 12(2) of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952. He was initially arrested on February 1.

There have been 176 deaths of detainees from 2015 to 2021, 44 of which occurred in 2021 according to police data.

Eighty-two of the deaths were in lock-up and 94 deaths in custody. In 2021, 14 people died in lock-up and 30 in custody.

The 82 lock-up deaths were of detainees who were Malay (42), Indian (15), Chinese (13) and foreigners (12). The racial profile statistics of people who died in custody have not been made unavailable. – February 15, 2021.