‘Stern action if negligence involved in Bentong prison inmate’s death’
KUALA LUMPUR: Stern action will be taken if negligence is uncovered in the death of Bentong prison inmate, M. Mariappan, who is believed to have died of severe acute gastroenteritis on Wednesday.
Prisons Department deputy director (prisons policy) Supri Hashim said the internal investigation was examining all aspects, including negligence, poor hygiene and inadequate treatment.
“The department will give its full cooperation to police. If the investigation reveals that negligence was involved, stern action will be taken against those involved,” he said in a statement yesterday.
Supri said Mariappan, 24, was moved to the Bentong prison’s sick bay for monitoring and treatment due to diarrhoea on June 4.
“He (later) received treatment at Bentong Hospital and was sent to Mempaga health clinic two days later, where he was pronounced dead.
“He was treated numerous times at the prison’s clinic before his death.”
Supri said the department had fulfilled its standard operating procedure (SOP) in handling Mariappan’s death.
“A police report was lodged, a coroner was informed for the purpose of (an) inquest, family members were notified, a postmortem was conducted and an internal investigation board was formed to facilitate an investigation.”
Mariappan was jailed on April 18 for housebreaking and was due to be released next year.
Supri said more than 607,000 daily medical treatments and follow-ups were provided to prisoners last year.
“Up to May 2018, more than 18,000 prisoners were recorded to have suffered from various illnesses.
“All prisoners are examined by medical officers when they enter jail.
“If they are unwell or reveal that they have an illness, we acquire their medical reports from the authorities and provide them with appropriate treatment.”
Supri said inmates’ health was a priority of the department, and that continuous measures had been carried out to improve healthcare facilities in the country’s prisons.
“The measures are not only to improve SOP adherence, but also to increase the number of medical staff, equipment and medicines at prisons’ clinics.
“At the moment, 264 medical staff from the Health Ministry are stationed in prisons.
“They comprise medical officers, dental surgeons, assistant medical officers, pharmacists, assistant pharmacists, nurses and psychologists,” he said.
Supri said 195,873 people were sentenced to jail last year, while more than 60,000 were placed under detention or the penal system nationwide.
He said the department welcomed the establishment of a special committee or a special task force to review health and death issues among prisoners.
“We will give our utmost cooperation to the committee, as it will help to further improve health management.
“In fact, the department had previously worked with various parties, including the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia, which visited jails to inspect and investigate conditions, and conduct surveys on the health and deaths of inmates.”