The misconduct notice relates to “information potentially not being passed to custody staff in charge of Mr Hassan’s welfare”.”The serving of a misconduct notice does not necessarily mean an officer has committed any wrongdoing. It is to notify an officer that their conduct is being investigated.”
Mr Hassan died after being arrested by South Wales Police in January, prompting an investigation by the police watchdog.
On the morning of Saturday the 9th of January at 8.30am Mr Hassan was arrested on suspected breach of the peace by 10.30pm He was found dead at a property on Newport Road in the Roath area of Cardiff.
The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) has now served one South Wales Police officer with a misconduct notice.
The lawyer for Mr Hassan’s family have called for the immediate suspension of said officer.
The IOPC have stated the officer in question attended the Newport Road address on Friday, January 8 – the day before Mr Hassan’s death – and accompanied Mr Hassan to the Cardiff Bay custody unit in the rear of a police van. Mr Hassan was heard on body-worn camera to complain of having a fit, suffering a migraine, and “displayed signs of experiencing pain”.
The misconduct notice relates to this information potentially not being passed to custody staff in charge of Mr Hassan’s welfare.
The IOPC sstated: “The serving of a misconduct notice does not necessarily mean an officer has committed any wrongdoing. It is to notify an officer that their conduct is being investigated.
“The most serious sanction that can be imposed if an officer is subsequently found to have breached professional standards at misconduct level is a written warning.”
Mr Hassan’s tragic death is “progressing” with a team of investigators whom are continuing to analyse hours and hours of body-worn video footage and CCTV footage.
The Guardian newspaper reported that Mr Hasan had been in contact with more than 50 police officers in the final hours of his life.
There has been a public outcry for IOPC & South Wales Police to release the footage of the day in question but the IOPC issued a statement that it was unable to release the footage “because it may need to be used in any future possible criminal, misconduct, or inquest proceedings”.
In January, over the period of three days, hundreds of people protested outside Cardiff Bay police station demanding information & footage about the series of events that lead to the death of Mr Hassan’s.
Witnesses had reportedly been shocked by Mr Hassan’s condition following his release from custody, saying his tracksuit was covered in blood and that he had severe injuries and bruising which was mentioned in the Senedd.
Catrin Evans IOPC director for Wales, stated:
“In the course of an investigation, where an indication arises that an officer may have breached professional standards that may warrant a disciplinary sanction, we serve a disciplinary notice to advise them they are subject to investigation.
“We have advised Mr Hassan’s family and South Wales Police that we have done so for one officer over possibly not passing information about Mr Hassan’s welfare to the custody sergeant on duty. We keep misconduct notices under review during the course of an investigation.
“At the conclusion of an investigation the IOPC decides whether any officer under notice has a disciplinary case to answer.”
Lawyer Hilary Brown, who is representing Mr Hassan’s family, told the PA news agency the family were “hugely distressed” to hear that he had been in pain or was injured during his time in custody.
Ms Brown said: “We don’t know the source of those injuries.
“But conveying that to a police officer, who should have then highlighted this to a custody sergeant, one thinks that if that had been done then maybe medical attention would have been sought for him.
“I can’t see how they say this could lead to misconduct. This is gross misconduct that is so serious could have contributed to the loss of somebody’s life.”
She said the family had called for the immediate suspension of the officer involved, and that a potential written warning “in no way reflects the seriousness of the negligence”.
Ms Brown added that Mr Hassan had no prior history of suffering from fits.
A South Wales Police statement said: “The serving of a misconduct notice does not necessarily mean an officer has committed any wrongdoing. It is to notify an officer that their conduct is being investigated.
“The force continues to fully co-operate with the IOPC investigation and is providing them with information and material, including CCTV footage and body-worn video.
“We acknowledge the impact Mr Hassan’s death has had on his family, friends and the wider community. Our thoughts and condolences continue to be with them.”