Woman commits suicide in Immigration detention facility

A Vietnamese woman allegedly committed suicide in a detention room at the Immigration Building in Taipa yesterday morning.
The 31 year-old woman, surnamed Mai, had been placed at the detention center for the third time, and was awaiting repatriation after being intercepted for illegal entry for the second time. According to the Judiciary Police (PJ), she was in a significant amount of financial debt.
The detainee was found by patrolling PSP officers at 8:15am after hanging herself with a pillowcase tied to the handrail of the bunk bed. The officers immediately moved her to the bed and notified fire and ambulance staff, who confirmed that she was already dead at the time of their arrival.
The PSP said that the woman had been assigned to a solitary detention room last Friday, and that no unusual signs were found before the incident. It stated in a press release yesterday that “the police are on high alert as a result of the incident, and will complete a comprehensive review on the detention center’s facilities, as well as reinforcing the management and prevention of detainees, so as to avoid similar incidents from happening again.”
Investigation into the case has been followed up by the PJ, who said that no suspicious injuries were found on her body during the preliminary investigation. The cause of the woman’s death is still to be confirmed by forensic examination.  BY