Death after police operation: Ombudsman makes serious allegations

Death after police operation: Ombudsman makes serious allegations

The death of 64-year-old Kupa Illunga Medard Mutombo after a police operation in Berlin-Spandau continues to raise serious questions. The incident occurred on September 14, 2022, when Mutombo, who suffered from paranoid schizophrenia and did not speak German, fell into a coma and died in hospital on October 6, 2022. According to the autopsy report, his cause of death was brain damage caused by lack of oxygen, which is said to have occurred during the operation. The operation, in which twelve police officers were involved, is classified by the ombudsman's office of the State Anti-Discrimination Act (LADG) as extremely problematic and is associated with serious allegations against the Berlin police. This accuses the police of violating the LADG's ban on discrimination because Mutombo was not treated adequately due to his disability and language barrier. The ombudsman's office is seriously demanding an apology from the police, recognition of state responsibility and compensation of at least 45,000 euros for Mutombo's family.

According to information from rbb24 The operation was initiated based on a court order that called for Mutombo to be placed in a closed psychiatric ward. Nevertheless, the investigation found significant deficiencies in the police's actions. There was a lack of interpreters and external psychiatric support, which is considered a serious omission. The brother, Mutombo Mansamba, had previously submitted a complaint to the ombudsman's office, which raised these issues. The ombudsman's office is part of the Senate Department for Labor and Social Affairs, which has also come under criticism because it addresses the police's lack of preparation and training in dealing with mentally ill people.

Structural deficits in police training

The Mutombo case makes it clear that there are serious structural deficiencies in how the police deal with people in mental health crises. Experts such as Martin Thüne, a scientist at the Thuringian University of Applied Sciences for Public Administration, point out that police training in this area is often neglected. The training varies greatly between the federal states and is often not provided adequately. It has also been found that police officers experience operations with mentally ill people as particularly stressful, which means that they often do not have the necessary calm and competence when dealing with these people. Thüne emphasizes that not all people with mental illnesses are dangerous, but this is often not adequately addressed in training.

In addition to the required apologies and financial compensation, the ombudsman's office is calling for binding guidelines and adjustments to police training. It is recommended to improve training for police officers and provide specialized training to be better prepared for mental illness. Thüne points out that it is crucial that police forces pay better attention to information from emergency calls in order to recognize in good time in which situations de-escalation may be necessary.