BENGALURU: A day after African nationals held a protest against an alleged custodial death of a Congolese citizen, CID officials on Tuesday began an investigation into the case and collected evidence.Even as tension gripped the vicinity of the JC Nagar police station on Monday when the protest turned violent, followed by a lathi charge, police stepped up their efforts to identify those who instigated the attack, which injured four cops and three protesters.
Speaking to The New Indian Express, Deputy Commissioner of Police (North) Dharmendra Kumar Meena said the postmortem will be conducted on Wednesday as per NHRC guidelines. Meanwhile, the body of 27-year-old Joel Shindani Malu alias Joah will be handed to officials of the Democratic Republic of the Congo embassy after the completion of all formalities. One officer from the embassy will witness the postmortem, which will be videographed and a copy of the same will be sent to the National Human Rights Commission.
Meanwhile, five of the protesters who allegedly created a ruckus have been produced before the magistrate after their arrest on Monday.“We have identified them as Araamann Ngoy, Clement Bakemda, Yousif Maketa, Juvanc Makungu and Guelorg, all aged 24-26 years. We are yet to verify their documents and ascertain if they are overstaying and have informed the FRRO. The accused have been subjected to medical examination since they were under the influence of alcohol,” the police officer added.
A senior officer from JC Nagar police station said: “We have taken up two cases, including the attacks on PSI Latha and PSI Mallikarjuna, during the protest. A minor boy was injured when the accused pushed him in a bid to escape. Based on a complaint by the boy’s parents, a case has been filed.”The CID officials have collected CCTV footage from the surroundings to help in identifying the accused involved in the violence and a special team has been formed to track them down. Police have taken action against 154 persons in the North division, who were caught staying without valid documents.