MITO, Ibaraki (Jiji Press) — A district court on Friday ordered the government to pay ¥1.65 million in damages for the 2014 death of a Cameroonian man in custody at an immigration center in Ibaraki Prefecture near Tokyo.
In a lawsuit filed in Mito District Court, the Cameroon man's mother demanded the government pay ¥10 million, claiming her son's death was caused by the immigration center's failure to provide adequate medical care. As a result of
According to the complaint, the then 43-year-old arrived at Narita Airport near Tokyo in October 2013, but was denied entry into Japan. After refusing to comply with the deportation order, he was detained at the Higashi-Nihon Immigration Center in Yoshiko, Ibaraki Prefecture.
The man, who had a chronic illness, repeatedly complained of ill health at the center, where he had been detained since November 2013.
On March 30, 2014, a staff worker at the center noticed a change in the Cameron man's condition and made an emergency call, but he was confirmed dead a short time later.
The defense claimed that the staff at the center failed to inform the doctor of his health condition or to request him to be shifted to the hospital despite his deteriorating health.
His lawyers said his death could have been avoided if he had been able to get the medical care he needed.
The State party claimed that it was difficult for workers at the center who were not medical personnel to determine the need for emergency transport, but there was nothing wrong with the way the man was treated.
In March last year, a Sri Lankan woman, then 33, died at the Nagoya Regional Immigration Services Bureau detention center in Aichi Prefecture.
The bereaved family has filed a lawsuit in the Nagoya District Court, demanding a total of ¥156 million in damages from the government.
