Watchdog investigating following death of man in Garda custody

Fiosrú, the Garda watchdog, has launched an investigation following the death of a man in Garda custody in Co Kildare on Saturday.The man, aged in his 30s, was found unresponsive at approximately 9.35am while in custody at Kildare Garda Station.Gardaí provided medical assistance at the scene, but the man was subsequently pronounced dead. The Office of the State Pathologist has been notified.Gardaí said the force is investigating the circumstances surrounding the incident.READ MOREAs required by law, the incident was referred to Fiosrú, the Office of the Police Ombudsman.Fiosrú said the referral resulted from “an incident which involved the death of an individual in Co Kildare”. It said its investigators attended the scene, and an independent investigation was ongoing.[ Garda watchdog Fiosrú logs breaches including laptop left in Dublin taxiOpens in new window ]Fiosrú investigations relate to incidents involving contact with gardaí where a member of the public has died or been seriously injured.A spokesperson said a referral does not necessarily mean a garda or gardaí have been accused of wrongdoing. “Instead, it means that Fiosrú should independently investigate the incident to ascertain whether or not the act or omission of a garda or gardaí may have resulted in the death of, or serious harm to, a person,” it said. Fiosrú said it could not comment further on a live investigation.