BENGALURU: A 24-year-old man, who was allegedly thrashed by the public for stealing a mobile phone, died in police custody on Saturday under mysterious circumstances. The deceased has been identified as Ramesh alias Ramappa, a resident of Thonde Bhavi village in Chikkaballapura district.
Earlier, high drama took place around 9.30 pm in Sampigehalli police station limits when the accused tried to escape after taking a commuter’s mobile phone on the pretext of making a phone call. He also climbed a pole in a bid to escape public fury.
A senior police officer said the complainant Praveen was walking near Nagawara junction when Ramesh came from behind and asked for his mobile phone. He said he had to make some urgent call, and trusting his words, Praveen gave him the mobile phone. Ramesh moved away a bit on the pretext of dialling a number. When Praveen followed, he started running along with the mobile phone. Praveen raised an alarm. Passersby chased Ramesh and in a bid to escape, he climbed on an advertising pole.
PSI Shivashankar from Sampigehalli police station and PC Somashekhar rushed to the spot. Meanwhile, Hoyasala 212 also arrived and Ramesh was nabbed by the cops after being convinced to come down. He was allegedly beaten by the public while being taken to the police station for questioning. Praveen also later filed a complaint against him.
During questioning, Ramesh complained of uneasiness and was taken to a government Hospital in Yelahanka. Around 11.30pm, he was brought to the station. Around 1.30am on Sunday, Ramesh again complained of the symptoms of uneasiness. He was taken to a nearby private hospital, where doctors said an ECG needed to be done immediately. He was subsequently shifted to another private hospital where he was declared dead.
Senior officials were informed about the incident and the case was handed over to the CID for probe. A case was filed under IPC 392 for punishment for robbery against Ramesh.
‘Police failed to protect him’
The family of the deceased has, meanwhile, alleged that the police failed to protect Ramesh from the mob. They want an impartial probe into the incident and strict action against those who assaulted him by taking law and order in their own hands.