A Fife dad is demanding answers after his son died just hours after a confrontation with police in Dundee.
James Gardiner, 66, claims there were inconsistencies in the explanation given to him by officers following the incident and that his son sustained a “huge bump” to the head.
His son, also called James Gardiner, died aged 42 in the early hours of Thursday March 31 at a property in Douglas.
James Sr, who lives in Tayport, said: “My son was apprehended by police in Kemnay Gardens in Douglas, near the shops.
“It was evening time and the police did a stop and search.They told me that he was resisting, and so he was handcuffed.
“I then have two different versions of events.
“One officer told me that my son had fallen over while his hands were behind his back.Another told me that my son had to be put to the ground by the officers.
“He banged his head, but was not taken to hospital or checked over.
“The police let him go because he didn’t have anything he shouldn’t have had on him, and he went to stay at my daughter’s house in Douglas.
“Another family member who saw him at the time said he didn’t look right.A few hours later, he died in his sleep.”
James added that when his daughters went to identify the body, they were “very frightened” due to a “huge bump” on his head.
He said: “The police said he only had a nick on his head, but my daughters wouldn’t have been in such a shock over a small nick they said the bump was huge.
“The post mortem said the death was unexplained, but I’m not happy with that.
“I don’t want to cause trouble or make a fuss if there had been a reasonable explanation about what happened I would’ve left it. It’s the lack of consistency that bothers me.”
James explained that his son had led a troubled life and battled substance abuse for more than 20 years. He is still awaiting the results of a toxicology report.
“I tried my best to help my son I refused to give him money as I knew he’d buy drugs,” he said.
“If he came to see me when he was in a state I’d scold him for it.But when he had his own money there wasn’t much I could do to stop him.
“All I want is answers about how he died so I can move forward.”
A police spokesman said the “sudden death” was discovered in a house in Dundee around 1.30am hours on Thursday March 31.
He said: “A report has been submitted to the procurator fiscal and a post mortem was carried out and we await the results of toxicology tests.
“It is understood the deceased man had contact with police officers the previous day but he was not arrested.
“Following the death of the man, and due to the previous police contact, liaison was made with the procurator fiscal and Police Scotland’s internal professional standards department regarding involvement of the Police Investigations Review Commissioner (PIRC).
“It was confirmed there was no requirement to make a referral.Police Scotland have maintained contact with the deceased man’s family to update them on this.”