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Sunday, 5 August 2012

Death in custody – Ho Kwai See (Sungai Buloh prison: 4 Aug 2002)

On 4 Aug 2002, Ho Kwai See, a 28-year old coconut trader, died in police custody at the Sungai Buloh prison one week after being detained.

The report from the first post-mortem carried out by the Kuala Lumpur Hospital stated that he died of a perforated ulcer.  However, his family noticed bruises on his body and suspected that he had been assaulted.

Despite the requirement that all custodial deaths be investigated by inquiries conducted pursuant to Chapter XXXII of the Criminal Procedure Code, it does not appear that an inquest has been conducted into Ho Kwai See’s death.

Every death in custody must be thoroughly and impartially investigated. Ho Kwai See’s death must not be relegated to a mere statistic.

Based on statistics disclosed by the Ministry of Home Affairs, 156 persons died in police custody from the year 2000 until February 2011.

We express our heartfelt condolences to Ho Kwai See’s family and friends on the anniversary of his death.

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