Simeon Francis, 35, was found unresponsive in his cell at Torquay police station
This article titled “England police watchdog investigates death of man in custody” was written by Steven Morris, for theguardian.com on Monday 8th June 2020 21.17 UTCThe England and Wales police watchdog is investigating the death of a man who died in custody in Devon.
Simeon Francis, 35, was found unresponsive in his cell at Torquay police station and later pronounced dead.
The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) will be focusing on the care he was given during detention and the frequency and adequacy of the checks carried out on him.
IOPC investigators have begun taking statements from officers who were on duty and examining CCTV footage from the custody suite.
So far the cause of death has not been established and further tests are being carried out.
Francis was arrested at 12.45am on 20 May on Cowley Bridge Road in Exeter, the IOPC said on Monday.
He was transported by police van to Torquay police station, where he was booked into custody at around 3am. Later he was found unresponsive in his cell and an ambulance was called but he was pronounced dead at 6pm on the same day.
IOPC regional director Catrin Evans said the watchdog had received a mandatory referral from Devon and Cornwall police following Francis’s death.
She said: “Our thoughts are with Mr Francis’ family and friends following his death. We will be keeping his family updated during the course of our independent investigation.
“Our investigators have begun gathering evidence and statements from officers. We are analysing a considerable amount of CCTV footage from the custody suite.
“We are looking at the level of care provided during the period of detention, including the frequency and adequacy of checks carried out.”
The IOPC said that when someone dies in police custody or following police contact, the force involved must refer the matter to it to assess whether it should investigate. Its role is to seek answers about what happened and share any learning highlighted by our investigations.
An inquest into Francis’s death was opened and adjourned last week.
The IOPC said a preliminary postmortem examination had taken place but did not identify a cause of death and further tests will be carried out.
Francis was jailed in 2017 for 20 months for stealing a car. He had previously lived in the south Devon seaside town of Dawlish but at the time of his sentence he was homeless.
His defence barrister told Exeter crown court he was released from an earlier prison term without any help in finding housing or accessing benefits.
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