Mouayed Bashir death: Gwent Police hand bodycam footage to IOPC

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Moyied Bashir, left, died after police were called to his homeImage source, Family Photo
Image caption,

Moyied Bashir, left, died after police were called to his home

Bodycam footage from officers who attended a man's house shortly before he died has been handed to the police watchdog, Gwent Police said.

Mouayed Bashir, 29, died on Wednesday after officers were called to his home in Maesglas, Newport.

More than 100 protesters gathered outside the city's central police station on Thursday.

The force has referred itself to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), as is standard procedure.

Mr Bashir's brother Mohamed previously said his brother had mental health issues and had been stabbed about three weeks before and put on medication.

He said his parents had called the police after "a combination of the medication and his mental health" meant "it got a bit stressful".

Mr Bashir alleged officers "forced" their way into his brother's room, handcuffed him and "tied him up by his leg".

"His stab wound is on his main artery, so while he is tied up, handcuffed, he started getting weaker," he said.

Gwent Police said when its officers arrived at the family's home "a 29-year-old man appeared to be suffering a medical episode".

Image caption,

Gwent Police has referred itself to the police complaints watchdog in line with standard procedures

It said officers called an ambulance and he was taken to Grange Hospital where he was confirmed dead.

In a statement issued by Gwent Police on Sunday, it said: "All uniformed officers in Gwent Police carry body-worn videos and the footage from this incident has been handed over in full to the IOPC and will form part of their investigation.

"There have been, understandably, calls from the community for us to release this footage publicly, however this footage is now owned by the IOPC and as such it is not Gwent Police's to release."

It acknowledged a "high level of concern" within the community and said it was "confident" the IOPC would report its findings "as soon as they are able".

It added: "Everyone at Gwent Police takes any loss of life extremely seriously and I wish to offer the family and friends of Mouayed Bashir... our sincere condolences."

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