'Hearing that was brutal': Witness speaks out after EMDC inmate dies in custody
A man says he witnessed a violent altercation at the Elgin Middlesex Detention Centre (EMDC) last month, the same night police say a man was taken to hospital and pronounced dead.
Wes Simpson was at the EMDC the night of Sept. 12, in the cell next to the person he believes was the victim taken to hospital that night.
“We heard yelling,” Simpson tells CTV News London in an exclusive interview. “Me and the guy underneath me, we both woke up to it and then there was a big bang.”
He says that “bang” sounded like someone being dragged off the top bunk in the next cell over, and slamming to the ground.
From there, he says it sounded like a fight broke out. At one point, he remembers hearing someone shout, “I’m going to gouge your eyes out and make you eat them.”
“Hearing that was brutal,” says Simpson.
It was after the lights had been turned off for the night, he says, and the commotion ended before any guards came to check on the situation. About 15 to 20 minutes later, Simpson says correctional officers came through for a routine check, only to pull what appeared to be a seriously injured man out of the cell.
“His chest was pretty red, and then his eye,” says Simpson. “He was bleeding from his eye.”
When he got a chance to see the cell next to his, Simpson says there was blood everywhere.
Emergency crews were called, performing chest compressions on the man pulled from the cell before taking him away, Simpson adds.
A London Police Services press release says an unresponsive man was taken to hospital the same night this took place, where he was later pronounced dead.
Simpson believes this to be the same person, someone he briefly got to know in the days leading up to the altercation.
“That guy was just too happy to just throw himself out like that,” he says.
Investigators have not released an official cause of death for the man who died in hospital. In the absence of concrete information, Simpson says he wants to get his experience out there to combat any rumours of what might have happened.
“I don’t believe it was a suicide,” he says.
London police tell CTV News London the incident is part of an active investigation, but they are not offering any further details at this time.
The Ministry of Justice also initiates an investigation whenever an inmate dies in custody. A ministry spokesperson tells CTV News London those take place after any police investigations conclude, take six to nine months to complete, and the findings will not be made public.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Which Canadian cities have the highest and lowest grocery prices?
Where you live plays a big factor in what you pay at the grocery store. And while it's no secret the same item may have a different price depending on the store, city or province, we wanted to see just how big the differences are, and why.
BREAKING McGill University seeks emergency injunction to remove pro-Palestinian encampment from campus
McGill University has filed a request for an injunction to have the pro-Palestinian encampment removed from its campus.
Swarm of 20,000 bees gather around woman’s car west of Toronto
A swarm of roughly 20,000 bees gathered around a woman’s car in the parking lot of Burlington Centre.
U.S. says Israel's use of U.S. arms likely violated international law, but evidence is incomplete
The Biden administration said Friday that Israel's use of U.S.-provided weapons in Gaza likely violated international humanitarian law but wartime conditions prevented U.S. officials from determining that for certain in specific airstrikes.
'State or state-sponsored actor' believed to be behind B.C. government hacks
The head of British Columbia’s civil service has revealed that a “state or state-sponsored actor” is behind multiple cyber-security incidents against provincial government networks.
Mother assaulted by stranger while breastfeeding baby in her car: Vancouver police
A person was arrested in East Vancouver Thursday after allegedly entering a car while a mother was breastfeeding her four-month-old boy.
Rare severe solar storm Friday could bring spectacular aurora light show across Canada
A rare and severe solar storm is expected to bring spectacular displays of the northern lights, also known as aurora borealis, across much of Canada and parts of the United States on Friday night.
More than half the Canadians once detained in Syrian camps for suspected ISIS family members have returned home
A total of 29 Canadians have been freed from detention camps in northeast Syria and brought back to Canada since human rights advocates began lobbying for their release years ago.
Canada abstains from Palestinian UN membership vote but supports two-state solution
Canada was one of 25 countries that abstained from a United Nations vote on Palestinian membership that passed with overwhelming support on Friday.