Sheku Bayoh’s sister says police watchdog error meant family could not say goodbye

Bayoh, a father of two, died in handcuffs and sustained multiple injuries after officers responded to calls from the public about a man brandishing a knife. Photograph: Family Handout/PA

The family of Sheku Bayoh were prevented from saying their final goodbyes because a miscommunication by the police watchdog meant a postmortem examination was carried out before his relatives were ready to identify his body, according to his sister.

In a morning of moving testimony at the inquiry into Bayoh’s death in custody, his sister Kadi Johnson set out a catalogue of alleged errors, miscommunications, conflicting information and apparent absence of compassion as she described her family’s treatment by the police and authorities from the moment they were informed the 31-year-old had died.