(GLYNN BROTHEN / iNFOnews.ca)

KAMLOOPS — A man who died while in Kamloops RCMP custody earlier this year suffered from a serious health condition that caused his death, according to a report released today by B.C.’s police watchdog.

The Independent Investigations Office of B.C. report says on the evening of March 12 an unnamed male was brought into RCMP cells for being intoxicated in public.

The arrest and transportation of the man to the RCMP detachment is described as “uneventful” in the report and that no significant force was required during the arrest.

Video footage shows the man being processed by police at the detachment. Two officers can be seen steadying the man on several occasions to prevent him from falling. After the man was processed, he was walked by officers to a cell and left sitting in a corner.

He was detained in cells throughout the night with regular checks by a cell guard. In the early morning the next day, the report says the man was found to be in medical distress. The man was pronounced dead after emergency personnel arrived.

A civilian cell guard at the Kamloops RCMP detachment was interviewed by the police watchdog agency. The cell guard says he began work just before midnight on March 12.

The intoxicated male had already been booked into cells when the guard arrived and it was the cell guard’s duty to regularly check on the occupants of the cells.

The cell guard states when he checked on the man he told the guard he was good and asked him if he could go. The guard says he told the man not yet as the man still appeared intoxicated.

At around 1 a.m. the cell guard saw the man sway and fall backwards onto the floor. The guard went to check on the man who was rolled onto his side.

The man assured the guard he was fine and he had not injured himself.

One hour later, the guard went to check on the man who appeared fine. At around 3 a.m., he saw the man lay down and assumed the man had fallen asleep.

The cell guard says they continued to conduct checks either by video or through cell door windows approximately every 15 minutes and noted the man was breathing or otherwise moving slightly, according to the report.

Just before 6 a.m., there was a shift change and the cell guard noticed the man had not moved noticeably for a long time. He went to the cell door and turned on the overhead light and noticed the man’s “colour wasn’t right.”

The jail guard called an RCMP officer down to cells. When the officer entered the cell, they immediately called for paramedics.

A postmortem examination report from the B.C. Coroners Service determined the cause of death was from a condition caused by an inflammation of the heart muscles that can cause sudden death even in healthy individuals.

The report also mentions methamphetamine toxicity as another significant condition contributing to his death. The level of methamphetamine in the man’s body was “in a lethal range.”

The report also says the man had been suffering from other serious medical conditions. There were no significant injuries observed, according to the autopsy.

The Independent Investigations Office determined the actions of police during the man’s time in custody were “reasonable and fell within the standard of care expected.”

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