Mohamud Mohammed Hassan: Hundreds march over arrested man's death

Hundreds of people have joined a march organised following claims a man died hours after being released by police in Cardiff.

The family of Mohamud Mohammed Hassan, 24, claim he was assaulted in custody.

More than 300 people took part in a march from the city centre to Cardiff Bay police station.

South Wales Police said it found no evidence of excessive force. The police watchdog said initial tests showed Mr Hassan was not killed by any injuries.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said toxicology tests were now being carried out and it was awaiting the full post-mortem results.

Earlier, First Minister Mark Drakeford said the reports of Mr Hassan's death were "deeply concerning".

Mr Hassan was arrested at his Roath home on Friday on suspicion of breach of the peace but released without charge on Saturday morning.

Mr Hassan's aunt Zainab Hassan told BBC Wales she had seen Mr Hassan within an hour of his release.

"He was released on Saturday morning with lots of wounds on his body and lots of bruises," she said.

"He didn't have these wounds when he was arrested and when he came out of Cardiff Bay police station, he had them."

In a virtual session of the Welsh Parliament on Monday, Plaid Cymru leader Adam Price said: "Every effort should be made to seek the truth of what happened."

He said he wanted to know why Mr Hassan was arrested and what happened during his arrest.

Mr Hassan's aunt Zainab Hassan said she saw him after his release

"Why did this young man die?," he added.

Mr Price said any inquiry should not be prejudged, but asked if the first minister would "help the family find those answers".

In response, Mr Drakeford said reports of the story were "deeply concerning".

"Our thoughts must be with the family of a young man who was... a fit and healthy individual," the Cardiff West MS said.

Mark Drakeford said he was deeply concerned by the reports

Mr Drakeford, who said the death must be "properly investigated", said the first step in any inquiry would be to allow the IOPC to carry out their work, which he said he expected "to be done rigorously and with full and visible independence".

He added that if there were things the Welsh Government could do "I will make sure that we attend properly to those".

Protesters on Tuesday afternoon chanted "no justice, no peace" and called for the police force to release CCTV of Mr Hassan's time in custody.

Some held signs that read "Black Lives Matter".

Protesters on Tuesday afternoon marched from the city centre to Cardiff Bay

In a statement on Monday, South Wales Police said Mr Hassan was arrested at his home in Newport Road on Friday night and taken to Cardiff Bay police station.

He was released at 08:30 GMT on Saturday and officers returned to the property at about 22:30 following his death.

It added: "As part of the South Wales Police investigation CCTV and body-worn video has already been, and will continue to be, examined.

"This will assist in establishing and understanding the events that took place.

"Early findings by the force indicate no misconduct issues and no excessive force."

Protesters were heard chanting "no justice, no peace"

Catrin Evans, the IOPC's director for Wales, said its investigation would focus on Mr Hassan's arrest, the journey in a police van to custody and his time at Cardiff Bay police station, including whether relevant assessments were made before he was released.

She said they would be "urgently examining the extensive relevant CCTV footage and body-worn video" and would be speaking to the officers involved as well as witnesses who saw his arrest on Friday evening and his movements the next day after leaving custody.

She added: "I send my condolences to Mr Hassan's family and friends, and to everyone affected by his sad death.

"We are aware of concerns being expressed and questions being asked about use of force by police officers. We will look carefully at the level of force used during the interaction and I would urge people show patience while our inquiries, which will take some time, are made."

Ms Evans added: "An interim report from a post-mortem examination is awaited.

"Preliminary indications are that there is no physical trauma injury to explain a cause of death, and toxicology tests are required."