Warning: This article contains references to death and police restraint
By Aara Syed. Cover image: Artwork by Matthew Tovey
Nearly 18 months since the devastating death of Mouayed Bashir, his family still have many unanswered questions.
29-year-old Mouayed died while in police custody. According to multiple reports, Mouayed was handcuffed and put in leg restraints by the police while he was still recovering from a large, deep stab wound.
Mouayed was not under arrest and it still remains unclear as to which police officers exactly are to blame for his death. The Bashir family have detailed that the police were told of Mouayed’s injury to his leg when they came to his home and handcuffed and restrained him.
A pre inquest review hearing on Mouayed’s death is set for 12 August 2022.
This article is a round-up of current information available on the Justice4Mouayed case based on research and conversations with the Justice4Mouayed campaign leadership.
17 February 2021
It’s a Wednesday morning, Mouayed’s parents call 999 for an ambulance, their middle child, Mouayed Bashir is suffering from an acute mental health episode.
The police arrive in black uniforms not long after Mouayed has finished taking a shower.
The officers and Mouayed head into his bedroom without any of his family present. Mouayed is restrained, his legs and thighs bound and he is put into handcuffs. His father pleads with the police to be careful and let go of Mouayed’s arms and legs, it is believed that around this time Mouayed started bleeding from his thigh.
According to the family, Mouayed’s father tried to open the bedroom door and see what was happening to no avail.
Silence.
Almost all of a sudden there is a flurry of activity, the police are in and out of Mouayed’s bedroom, another ambulance is called.
It is just before 12pm when Mouayed Bashir is pronounced dead at The Grange University Hospital in Cwmbran.
A post mortem examination does not establish Mouayed’s cause of death, it is hoped that the cause of death will be announced at the inquest.
Months of grief and unanswered questions
Within 24 hours of Mouayed’s death his friends, family and other concerned individuals organise and attend multiple protests. The protestors mourn Mouayed’s death and demand answers. Of utmost importance for the Justice4Mouayed campaign, the release of the relevant bodycam footage from the police officers who restrained and handcuffed him.
There is only one entry (a statement on opening the investigation) on the IOPC page for the investigation into Mouayed’s death in police custody. According to this webpage the entry was posted on 18 February 2021 (the day after Mouayed’s death).
A few days after Mouayed died, Gwent Police provides the IOPC with the bodycam footage of the officers who came to the Bashir house on the morning of 17 February 2021.
Early on 26th February 2021, before Mouayed’s funeral: Mouyed’s older brother, Mohannad; the youngest Bashir brother and their father visit the morgue in Cardiff to wash Mouayed’s body in accordance with Muslim practice.
Mouayed’s funeral is a large affair, with members of the community coming together in their loss and ‘filling the mosque’ in support of the Bashir family.
For months after Mouayed’s death, Mohannad is living in Mouayed’s bedroom, a triggering place, it is after all, the room where the police restrained and handcuffed Mouayed the day he died. The Bashir family had been on a waiting list to be rehoused for several years and following Mouayed’s death the house is now associated with pain and tragedy.
Mohannad would see Mouayed in every moment of his daily routine, whether brushing his teeth or getting out of the shower. Mouayed’s mother had a habit of checking in on Mouayed every morning, for a while it was difficult for her to walk past his room.
In July 2021, at Newport Coroner’s Court an inquest into Mouayed’s death is adjourned to July 2022. There has been further delays as now (in July 2022) it looks as though a pre-inquest review hearing will take place on 12 August 2022.
Senior coroner for Gwent, Caroline Saunders, details that the delay is due to Covid causing a backlog of cases to be heard, especially those that need a jury present (such as the inquest into Mouayed’s death in police custody).
New year, continued fight for justice and answers
At the end of January 2022, BBC Wales Investigates, broadcasts documentary, ‘Death of Two Black Men: Police in the Spotlight’.
This 30-minute programme examines the death of Mohamud Hassan following police custody. Mohamud died only a month before Mouayed. Mohamud’s inquest is due to take place in May 2023.
Mouayed Bashir’s demise following police restraint is also looked at by the episode’s presenter Mo Jannah, both of Mouayed’s brothers share their knowledge of what happened on the day that Mouayed died.
Also in January 2022, Mohannad’s heavy metal band, Torchbearer release ‘Never Forgive’, a song that doubles as a call to action over the continued efforts to get justice for Mouayed in a society rife with systemic injustices.
In February 2022, almost a year after Mouayed’s death, his father and brothers see a two-hour compilation of pixelated and edited bodycam footage. This footage stems from the different body cameras worn when the police came to the Bashir home on the day of Mouayed’s death.
A few days later, a march was held in remembrance of Mouayed Bashir. Hundreds of individuals, including his family gather and walk through Newport, eventually arriving outside of Newport Central Police Station where mourners took the knee and candles were lit in memory of Mouayed, one year on.
April 2022, Mohannad’s friend and podcast producer, Asya Fouks releases 2-part The Times podcast (Stories of our Times) episode, ‘A lost brother – death in South Wales’. This audio news content deeply explores the life and death of Mouayed Bashir and the systemic racism and ableism surrounding his death and his family’s continued search for justice. The podcast episodes can be accessed via the Justice4Mouayed link tree.
At the time of publication, the pre inquest review hearing is mere weeks away (12 August).
Mohannad Bashir, speaking during the podcast episode, says that from the inquest the family ‘would like to see the police officers and whoever was involved that morning be accountable, own what happened, an apology from the institution on top of that.’
He adds: ‘The country and the government really need to start looking into the issues of mental health and really fund the emergency services where they need the money so bad to provide a good service, that we should, that every person is entitled to and deserves.’
