Cape Town - A Macassar family is seeking answers over their son’s alleged suicide while in police station holding cells on Wednesday last week.
Lester Prins, 37, was allegedly arrested last week for reasons the family said they don’t know and were later notified on Thursday that he had hung himself with the mat he slept on.
The family said an autopsy report and the circumstances that lead to his death were withheld from them.
His mother, Maria Hans said when the police came into her house they said Lester had been violent and aggressive and that he was transferred into a single cell.
“At first it didn't register and when I asked the police what happened they told me he hung himself and at that moment I collapsed. It's hard for me to believe that my son killed himself.
“I'm broken and what hurts me the most is that they didn't let the family view the alleged scene but we were only told after he was removed to Tygerberg mortuary without us even seeing him, which could have brought closure to the family.
“However, I know for sure that my son was murdered, he didn’t commit suicide,” said Hans.
Family member David Philander said Lester had been out on parole for the past two months and he was expected to sign at Somerset West Correctional Services on that fateful Wednesday.
“We are still in the dark as to how he got to the Macassar police station, whether he was transported or was arrested in Somerset West. We all want answers as there are two different versions with regards to how he allegedly killed himself.
“They first said he hung himself with a mat and now a mattress. How he got a knife to cut the thick mat still remains a mystery to us. We want to see the autopsy report and the pictures of the scene as this happened in police custody. There are many questions we haven't got answers for,” said Philander.
Independent Police Investigative Directorate spokesperson Grace Langa said Prins was arrested for one count of assault and another count of assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.
She said an autopsy has been performed and the report would only be available after three months.
Langa said there would be no further investigation as the pathologist attended the crime scene, and doctors findings were consistent with the reported cause of the death.