Another custodial death involving an inmate at Taiping Prison has surfaced.
This comes barely a month after the prison in the sleepy town of Perak was rocked by allegations of “riots” within its walls, resulting in the death of 62-year-old inmate Gan Chin Eng and leaving several others injured.
The latest case involves 30-year-old M. Vijian (main image), who died on Feb 15.
The family was initially informed that Vijian had suffered from tuberculosis but was later told that he also had two broken ribs. A police report was lodged at the Batu Gajah police station yesterday.
The deceased, a labourer, was transferred from the Batu Gajah correctional facility to Taiping Prison on Jan 16, just a day before wardens at the nation’s oldest prison had allegedly beaten up some 100 inmates, including Gan.
Speaking to Twentytwo13, the brother of the deceased, M. Indran, said his mother, S. Mariamah, received a call from Taiping Hospital on Jan 24 at 2.30pm, informing her that Vijian was in the emergency ward and in serious condition.
“We rushed to the hospital, and when we arrived, the doctor on duty said my brother had tuberculosis. We were informed by a prison warden at the hospital that my brother had experienced vomiting and had fainted while having breakfast at Taiping Prison earlier that day,” said Indran from Batu Gajah.
“Another warden told us that if we had arrived earlier at 2pm, we would have been able to talk to my brother.”
Indran’s elder sister, Cecilia Joseph, 35, told Twentytwo13 she met the doctor on duty on Jan 26 and was informed that her brother had to be intubated as he was having breathing difficulties.
“I asked the doctor how it was possible that my brother could suddenly be infected with tuberculosis when he was healthy before entering prison. But I was told that it was common for those in prison to be infected.
“Even the prison warden stationed at the hospital told me the same thing. One of the wardens also said he too, had been infected with tuberculosis before, but when I asked him if his condition was the same as my brother’s, he answered in the negative.”
Cecilia, who is the deceased’s stepsister, said the family was also informed by the hospital that Vijian’s lungs and kidneys had been affected due to infection, and he had to undergo dialysis.
“At first, we thought his condition was improving. But on Feb 13, we were told by the doctor on duty that my brother was in a critical state. On Feb 15, Indran received a call from the hospital informing him that my brother Vijian had passed away at 9.10am.”
Cecilia said the family suspected something was amiss and requested a post-mortem.
“By then, we had heard that over 100 inmates at the prison were allegedly beaten up by more than 60 wardens. We just want to know what really happened to my stepbrother,” she said.
“We requested for Vijian’s post-mortem to be conducted at Raja Permaisuri Bainun Hospital in Ipoh instead of Taiping Hospital, and our request was granted.”
Cecilia said while the family was still waiting for the post-mortem report, she claimed the forensic specialist at the hospital informed them that Vijian had a minor infection in his kidney and two broken ribs.
“A Dr Tan Lii Jye told us that the ribs had been broken between three and four weeks ago, and it was due to being beaten,” she said.
Pending the post-mortem results, Cecilia said the cause of death has been classified as pneumonia with ischemic heart disease.
“My brother died just one month after entering Taiping Prison. His court case for his alleged drug-related offence was set for March 23-24. Now he is no longer with us.
“What actually happened to my brother? How did he die? There must be answers. No one from Taiping Hospital had informed us that he had suffered broken ribs.
“They told us during our visits that many X-rays of Vijian had been taken, but not once were we informed of his broken ribs. Why was this information concealed from the family? We want the truth,” she said.
On Jan 25, Twentytwo13 reported that Gan had allegedly died from an abdominal injury due to blunt trauma.
Gan’s family, including his 19-year-old son, are still in the dark as to what happened to him, as authorities, including the Home Ministry and police, have yet to make public the outcome of the investigation.
Gan’s son had previously claimed that the authorities were not honest with the family. The 19-year-old said prison authorities never told them that Gan had been beaten. Instead, they were told that his death could have been due to heart disease.
