Death in police custody in Seine-Saint-Denis: investigating judge appointed
A 44-year-old man died on Tuesday in a police station in Saint-Ouen. A judicial inquiry has been opened to determine the causes of death.
Judicial inquiry following death in custody
An investigating judge has been tasked with determining the causes of death of Mauricio K., a 44-year-old Angolan who died on Tuesday in a police station in Saint-Ouen (Seine-Saint-Denis), according to a statement from the Bobigny public prosecutor's office released on Thursday, 29 October. The man had lived in France since the age of eight and worked as a painter.
According to BFM TV and the prosecutor's office, the man had been arrested on Monday for sexist abuse, abuse and threats against a representative of the authorities. At the time of his arrest, he had a blood-alcohol level of 1.37 mg per litre of exhaled air. He was examined by a doctor after his arrest, and again by a doctor from the forensic medical unit during the night; both deemed his condition compatible with remaining in police custody.
Death occurred on Tuesday around 3 p.m. Police officers provided first aid before the arrival of firefighters, who were unable to resuscitate the man who had gone into cardiorespiratory arrest. An autopsy carried out on Wednesday revealed no traumatic injuries that would directly explain the death.
The lawyer for the victim's father filed a complaint on Wednesday for "intentional violence resulting in death without intent to kill" committed by a person invested with public authority. The document states that serious violence may have been committed during the arrest and potentially within the police station. The prosecutor's office emphasised that additional expert assessments — anatomopathological and toxicological — are necessary to clarify the causes of death, with the victim having a history of heart conditions.
Karim Bouamrane, Socialist mayor of Saint-Ouen, expressed his "profound emotion" following the death and called for "full light to be shed on the circumstances of this tragedy".
Source: BFM TV