An Indonesian man died after a struggle with the police while being arrested for going on a rampage and acting aggressively at Taman Bukit Jambul in Penang last Saturday.
Acting Penang police chief Alwi Zainal Abidin said an autopsy found that the man, believed to be an undocumented migrant, died of a heart attack.
“At about 6.20pm on Saturday, police received a public complaint about a man behaving violently and wielding an iron rod at Block D, Taman Bukit Jambul.
“A police team was immediately dispatched to the scene. Upon arrival, the officers were attacked by the suspect, who acted aggressively, punching one of the policemen several times in the face and the back of the head, and attempting to seize his firearm,” Bernama reported him as saying today.
Alwi said members of the public helped police subdue the man, who was taken to the Sungai Nibong police station.
He said the man suddenly collapsed while at the police station and was rushed to Penang Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Alwi said an autopsy confirmed that the cause of death was a heart attack. The case has been classified as sudden death.
“We received two police reports related to the incident, one about the suspect smashing a resident’s car window with an iron rod, and the other about a break-in at the resident’s flat unit.
“Both acts were committed by the suspect before his outburst. Concerned for their safety, the residents contacted the police after witnessing the man behaving uncontrollably and aggressively,” he said.
Alwi said further investigations were underway to identify the man, as he had no identification documents and residents claimed they did not know who he was.
