Bahrain has put an officer from its National Security Agency on trial over the death of a detainee assaulted in custody, state media reported on Thursday.
A special investigations unit referred the officer to trial on charges of assault leading to death, the Bahrain News Agency said. The suspect remains in custody.
The unit said the case came to light on March 27, when it was notified by the security agency's inspector general that the detainee arrested under a legal warrant had been assaulted by one of its members.
The detainee was taken to hospital, where he died.
The unit said it immediately launched an investigation. A forensic doctor was assigned to establish the nature of the injuries and the cause of death, while investigators reviewed all procedures taken after the arrest.
Authorities collected medical records, documents and video evidence, conducted an on-site inspection and intensified judicial police inquiries. Statements were also taken from the victim’s father and witnesses, it added.
The accused officer was interrogated during the investigation and confessed to the charges, the SIU said.
Based on what it described as conclusive evidence establishing the suspect’s guilt, the unit ordered his continued detention and referred the case to the High Criminal Court for trial.
In recent weeks, Bahrain charged several people with spying for Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, and others were arrested over charges of forming a terrorist cell linked to Lebanon's Iran-backed Hezbollah.
The kingdom had come under drone and missile strikes launched from the Islamic Republic.
