A man of “African origin” collapsed and died at a Lausanne police station less than an hour after being arrested, Swiss prosecutors said Monday as they launched a criminal investigation.
The Vaud regional Public Prosecutor’s Office said that at around 9:00 pm (2000 GMT) on Sunday in central Lausanne, police conducted a check on “a 39-year-old man of African origin”.
The man’s nationality has not yet been established.
His behaviour “suggested activity related to drug trafficking”, a statement said. The man fled but was “subsequently arrested… after resisting arrest.
“After the situation calmed down, the man was taken to the police station for questioning.
“During the intervention, he became unwell. He died shortly before 10:00 pm, despite resuscitation attempts,” which involved the emergency medical services.
The Public Prosecutor’s Office “has opened a criminal investigation to establish the circumstances of the death”, the statement said, with the investigation supported by forensic pathologists and forensic science specialists.
“An autopsy has been ordered. Further investigative measures are also under way,” the statement said.
The Swiss domestic news agency Keystone-ATS said Sunday’s death “comes amidst a critical situation regarding police action in the canton of Vaud”, noting that four black men died in the region following police interventions between 2016 and 2021, sparking demonstrations denouncing racism and police violence.
Mike Ben Peter, 39, died following a violent arrest after he refused a police drug search near Lausanne railway station in early 2018.
In the encounter with the six police officers, he was pinned to ground on his stomach. He died in hospital a few hours later after suffering a heart attack.
His death initially received little attention but the global outcry over George Floyd’s death at the hands of Minneapolis police on May 25, 2020 placed a bigger spotlight on Ben Peter’s case.
Last year, a Vaud appeals court confirmed the acquittal of six police officers, who had been charged with negligent homicide.
Two of the other cases ended with rulings that the officers who fired fatal shots had acted in self-defence.
One case remains unresolved by the legal system.
