21 Year Old Dies After A Month In Simpang Renggam Prison

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Surendran Shanker, 21, has become the latest statistic in Malaysia’s death-in-custody cases.PETALING JAYA: A 21-year-old who was arrested on a drug charge last year became the latest death-in-custody casualty when he died at the Kluang hospital this morning, less than a month after being moved to the Simpang Renggam prison.
Surendran Shanker’s death comes just a month after that of cow’s milk vendor A Ganapathy on April 18 and security guard S Sivabalan on May 20. Both of them died in hospital after being held at the Gombak police station.
A police report lodged by a prison official today, which was sighted by FMT, cited a doctor at the Kluang hospital as stating that Surendran died due to “septic shock with multiple organ failure”.
He had been taken to the hospital from the Simpang Renggam prison after complaining of severe abdominal pain.
“We have to accept that he is gone but I feel there is injustice here,” said Surendran’s mother, Kumatameri Asirvatham.
“We feel there is foul play involved as Surendran had no health issues. He was only 21.”
Surendran was arrested in Petaling Jaya last June and was remanded for four days before being detained under the Prevention of Crime Act (Poca).
Surendran Shanker’s mother Kumatameri Asirvatham (R) and cousin Surenthar Richard (L).He was sent to the Muar rehabilitation centre last August, which was the last time his family saw him. Surendran, who turned 21 in January, was then transferred to the Simpang Renggam prison on April 25.
Kumatameri said she received a call at around 4.30pm yesterday from a Simpang Renggam prison official who told her Surendran had “severe pain in his stomach” and was admitted to the Kluang hospital on Tuesday.
After calling the hospital and finding out that Surendran was in “critical condition”, she was told to call back later in the night and talk to a doctor who could provide more details.
Surendran’s cousin, Surenthar Richard, called the Kluang hospital at around 8pm and was told that Surendran’s condition had worsened.
When he called back at around 1.15am today, a police officer informed Surenthar that Surendran had died at around 12.30am.
K Ganesh, the lawyer representing Ganapathy’s family, has agreed to act on behalf of Surendran.
Ganesh was among those at the home ministry’s headquarters in Putrajaya this morning, where a group of Pakatan Harapan representatives intended to hand over a memorandum calling for an independent task force to investigate the deaths of Ganapathy and Sivabalan.
They were turned away at the ministry’s gates.
“How many more deaths like these must happen before the government sits up and takes action?” he asked.
“The people need to wake up and realise that this could happen to any one of us.” - FMT

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