• A 30-year-old man has died following police contact in the Pentwyn area of Cardiff during the early hours of Saturday, he was pronounced dead at University Hospital of Wales at 2.30am.
• The IOPC have given more detail on the incident, telling voice.wales that the unidentified man was restrained and cuffed whilst cops responded to a call about a man in distress.
• Cardiff cops are also being investigated by the IOPC over the death of Mohamud Hassan in January 2021, with misconduct notices served to several officers who still patrol Cardiff streets.
The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) has confirmed further details concerning the death of a Cardiff man after police contact in the early hours of Saturday 19 June.
IOPC officials have confirmed that a 30-year-old man “in distress” had been in contact with South Wales Police officers at 1am and was “restrained and handcuffed” before emergency services were called to the scene.
The incident, which took place at Glyn Collen, Pentwyn, resulted in the unidentified man being taken to the University Hospital of Wales where he was pronounced dead at 2.30am.
The case is being probed by the IOPC as an inquest to determine the cause of death.
An IOPC spokesperson told voice.wales: “IOPC investigators were sent to the post incident procedures and are carrying out an assessment of the circumstances and available information.”
The watchdog said that initial statements from the officers told them that the restraint applied to the man was “for his own safety” and that he was not arrested during the altercation.
Catrin Evans, IOPC Director for Wales, said: “We understand the concern in the local community as a result of this incident, in part due to footage that has been shared online.”
Evans referred to a video that has circulated on social media which appeared to show South Wales Police (SWP) officers manhandling an unidentified man in the area that night.
Two people in the video, who appear to know the man, try to identify him. The video then cuts to what appears to be the same area the following day, with a police cordon around it, and a voice says ‘that’s where the kid died.’
The camera is pointed at what appears to be the exact spot in Pentwyn where the man was being restrained by police.
The IOPC has also commented on the use of a Taser during the incident, telling voice.wales that “a Taser audit has yet to be carried out” but from an “analysis of the scene and the video evidence seen so far” there was “no evidence at this stage” that a Taser had been used.
Evans continued: “This work is in its infancy and we will be speaking to witnesses as well as reviewing body-worn video footage of the incident as part of our investigation.”
Body-worn video of the circumstances surrounding another death after contact with SWP cops, Mohamud Hassan who died in January 2021 after being detained in Roath, has been kept secret from press outlets despite public outcry.
Multiple misconduct notices have been handed out to South Wales Police officers over the death, including for excessive use of force. But the police have said that officers under investigation are still on the beat in and around Cardiff.
Protestors have made efforts to highlight the lack of police accountability over the Mohamud Hassan case, with some activists facing intimidation tactics and fines for speaking up.
The force has released a short statement that describes the death as what “appears to be a medical episode with no suspicious circumstances.”
voice.wales asked the police yesterday why the death had been referred to the IOPC, as the force gave little detail to the press about the officer’s involvement with the man at the scene before his death.
A SWP spokesperson said: “Police forces in England and Wales have a statutory duty to refer to the IOPC any incident involving a death which has occurred during or following police contact.”
Police have said that next of kin have been informed.
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