A Prisoner Dies under Torture

Nyala, South Darfur, March 30,2017

A 29-year-old prisoner, M.A.S., was killed in Nyala Prison in South Darfur State amid reports of torture. The prison administration, however has denied this. An official source in the state said that the prisoner, who died on Tuesday, had arrived at the prison three days earlier, after he was convicted in a public order court under Article 169 which is associated with alcohol consumption. He was sentenced to flogging and prison time for nonpayment.

According to the source, the victim was beaten before being incarcerated, causing his health to deteriorate and leading to his death that night. “The cause of death, according to a medical autopsy report issued by the Turkish hospital in Nyala, is a severe rupture of the kidneys due to being beaten with a solid tool, in addition to bruises on the head.” He added that “relatives of the deceased refused to receive his body until a complete autopsy is done, causes of his death known and legal action taken.”

The source pointed out that the public order police and the prison administration had exchanged accusations of involvement in the torturing the prisoner which led to his death. However, an official with the Nyala Prison Administration strongly denied that the prisoner was tortured and claimed that the victim was not beaten in the prison; however, he could not provide an explanation for the cause of death