A mysterious illness took the life of a Myanmar national held at the KLIA Immigration Depot last Saturday. He died at the Putrajaya General Hospital ( below ) where a group of inmates were rushed to after being hit by the unknown disease.

According to a Tenaganita (a non-Governmental Organisation that looks after the welfare of women and migrant workers) representative who tipped off Malaysiakini about the matter, the symptoms included "high fever, facial swelling, red spots all over the body and involuntary convulsions."

When contacted, an official from the detention facility confirmed the death of the Myanmarese on Aug 29 and the hospitalisation of the seven inmates.

However, the official said that the death has been classified as ‘death from natural causes' pending a full medical report from the doctor in charge of the case.

Asked if precautions are being taken in case it is an infectious disease, the official replied unless the medical report states otherwise there was no necessity.

Disease puzzles doctors

putrajaya 120505 hospital A staff at the Putrajaya hospital ( left ) who declined to be identified said "medical tests are still being conducted [on the deceased]."

He said that this is to ascertain the actual cause of death and the exact nature of the disease afflicting the inmates.

As of now, he claimed that they are as ‘baffled' as everyone else.

Pending a thorough medical investigation, the hospital representative said that they cannot yet issue an official statement.

According to him, the other inmates who were admitted exhibited "similar symptoms" as the deceased.

The deceased and warded inmates were all occupants of Block B1 at the KLIA Immigration Department's detention facility.

Death adds to list

This latest incident follows a string of deaths in Immigration custody from infections and diseases.

Just last month the same facility was locked down after an inmate, a 35 year old Togolese, passed away from H1N1 while being detained there.

Earlier in May two inmates died from Leptospirosis. The 38 inmates of the Juru Immigration Depot in Penang, including the two who passed away, were apparently infected with the deadly disease after allegedly drinking or bathing in water contaminated with rat urine.