Youth held for burglary in Bangalore dies in police custody

A 22-year-old man, arrested in connection with a case of burglary, died in police custody on Sunday.

Police said Lokesh died of diarrhoea at a private hospital in KG Halli, where he had been admitted late on Saturday night.
A magistrate would probe the death of Lokesh alias Loki. He was arrested around 11 am on Saturday from Hennur police station limits.

The investigators had earlier taken him to Tamil Nadu’s Salem district, in a bid to arrest his associate. Lokesh’s health reportedly deteriorated in Salem, forcing the police to abort the mission and return to the city.

The police provided medical help to Lokesh only after reaching the city late in the night. Police declined to identify the deceased man’s associate, who was also allegedly involved in burgling a house along with Lokesh in Hennur in May.

Deputy commissioner of police (east) M Chandrashekar said Lokesh was arrested in connection with a burglary case the Hennur police had filed in May. It was alleged that the deceased and his associate were involved in the burglary.

“During interrogation, he told the police officers that his associate was in Salem. Based on this information, a police team left for Salem with Lokesh. On reaching Salem, he complained of uneasiness and showed symptoms of diarrhoea,” he said.

The team returned to Bangalore around 11.45 pm and admitted Lokesh in Mediscope, where he died around 12.35 am.
Admitting that the police used force to arrest Lokesh, who had tried to resist, Chandrashekar ruled it out as the cause of his death.

The DCP said the arrested Lokesh was not produced before a court. “As soon as he confessed to the crime and gave details of his associate, the team left for Salem around 1 pm,” he said.
He said something Lokesh had eaten before his arrest might have caused the illness. None of the policemen, who had accompanied Lokesh, suffered an upset stomach, ruling out the possibility of food poisoning en route to Salem.

Chandrashekar said Lokesh was healthy when he was arrested. “His health became worse only after reaching Salem. The team returned to Bangalore in no time after he had taken ill,” he said.
Police had earlier arrested Lokesh, a resident of A Narayanapura, six times, between 2005 and 2009 ,in as many cases. He was, however, not punished in any of those cases.

Police were trying to track his immediate family members. According to available information, his father Patchappa had passed away. The whereabouts of Lokesh’s mother, Selvi, was not known, though a few of his relatives were present at the Bowring Hospital on Sunday, where a post-mortem examination was conducted.