Rally marks 6th anniversary of Soleiman Faqiri’s death while in custody
Posted December 17, 2022 7:22 am.
Last Updated December 18, 2022 9:25 am.
A rally was held Saturday in downtown Toronto to mark the sixth anniversary of the death of a 30-year-old man with schizophrenia while being held in custody at an Ontario jail.
Soleiman Faqiri died on Dec. 15, 2016, after being beaten, pepper sprayed and restrained in a prone position in a segregation cell at Central East Correctional Centre in Lindsay, Ont., according to a report from Ontario’s chief forensic pathologist.
Faqiri, who had schizophrenia, was awaiting a transfer to a mental health facility at the time of his death. Dr. Michael Pollanen concluded in 2021 that his schizophrenia worsened significantly during his 11 days in jail, that he suffered from an enlarged heart and his exhausting “violent struggle” with jail guards all contributed to his death.
A 2017 coroner’s report noted Faqiri was found with dozens of injuries, including 50 bruises and blunt force trauma, but concluded the cause of death was “unascertainable.”
The City of Kawartha Lakes conducted an initial investigation and declined to press charges against the correctional officers allegedly involved. Provincial police came to the same conclusion following its own investigation and after the case was referred back to them following Pollanen’s report.
“We’re here to remember other Ontarians and other Canadians who had the same fate as my late brother and recall the fatal nexus between incarceration and mental illness, that is to say given to their families in body bags rather than be treated with respect and diginity,” Yusuf Faqiri told supporters who gathered at Yonge-Dundas Square. .
The vigil was aimed at raising greater awareness and attention to the need for reform and accountability when it comes to mental health and the corrections system in Canada.
