The police watchdog has launched an investigation into the death of a man who died the day after being arrested.<\/p>\n
The 26-year-old was detained on Brandon Street in Southwark, south London, at about 11:30 BST on Friday.<\/p>\n
An ambulance was called shortly after he arrived in custody as officers believed he had “swallowed something”, but he died in hospital on Saturday.<\/p>\n
The Met Police said it had referred itself to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).<\/p>\n
The man was in a car which was stopped by officers when he was arrested on suspicion of being in possession of a knife, the force added.<\/p>\n
IOPC regional director Sarah Green described the death was “tragic” and said investigators had already been to Walworth Police Station to carry out “post-incident procedures”.<\/p>\n
She added: “We were made aware of the man’s arrest, and that he had been taken to hospital, on the afternoon of 30 March.<\/p>\n
“We will be offering the man’s family regular updates on the progress of our investigation.”<\/p>\n
The Met Police said a post-mortem examination will be held in due course.<\/p>\n
A spokesman added: “A lock knife was found in the car and the man was arrested.<\/p>\n
“The Met’s Directorate of Professional Standards is investigating and a referral was made to the Independent Office for Police Conduct who have begun an independent investigation.”<\/p>\n
Source: bbc.co.uk<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"