SYDNEY, July 25 (Xinhua) -- A man has died after being tasered by police in the course of an arrest in Western Australia (WA).
WA Police said on Friday that an investigation has been launched into the death of the man, who suffered a medical episode shortly after being tasered by officers in the early hours of Friday morning.
Assistant Commissioner Martin Haime told reporters at a press conference that the man had allegedly entered a home occupied by people not known to him in the Perth suburb of Embleton around 12:30 a.m. and smashed multiple windows.
Police officers attended the scene and located the man in a garden at the rear of the property, subsequently deploying a taser during attempts to detain him when he failed to comply with instructions.
The man was restrained but suffered a medical episode minutes later, Haime said.
Police provided first aid until ambulance paramedics arrived and transported him to a hospital, where he later died.
Haime said that the incident was being treated as a death in custody.
"Our thoughts are with the man's family and loved ones during this difficult time," he said.
Officers from WA Police's internal investigation unit will investigate the man's death. ■
