Man found dead in his cell on Sept. 17 had finished his sentence

The Alberta Serious Incident Response Team (ASIRT) has been called in to investigate after a 27-year-old man was found dead in his cell the night he was to be released.

Edmonton Police Service say the EPS detainee management unit (DMU) went to the man’s cell at roughly 7 p.m. Thursday night to begin the release process, only to find him lying on the floor.

He did not respond when officers called out to him and did not have a pulse, nor was he breathing. An on-site paramedic attempted CPR while emergency medical services and Edmonton Fire Rescue Services were dispatched. However, they were unable to revive him. The man was declared dead at 7:55 p.m.

EPS referred the matter to the CEO of the Police Review Commission, who has dispatched ASIRT to investigate further.

How inmates are handled has been the subject of some controversy recently. Mayor Andrew Knack had not long ago called for an overhaul of how provincial and federal institutions release prisoners who have completed their sentence after footage surfaced showing eight people being dropped off in Chinatown at 9 p.m. on a Friday.

ASIRT told Postmedia they would not be commenting any further until the investigation is complete, but confirmed the man was in police custody, which is a separate entity than corrections.

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